London Calling
by Ta Paixao
Summary: Sequel to "Under the Blood Moon." The story continues...
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**Chapter Notes: **Here it is, the continuation of Under the Blood Moon. If you've followed me over from part 1, I'm happy to have you. If you stumbled onto this story, please read UtBM first or none of this will make any damn sense.

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**Chapter 1**

Salt air has an incomparable cleansing effect on body and spirit. Those of us who worship under the balmy rays of the sun and soak in the rolling ocean tides are not truly whole when we can't smell those singularly distinct scents that carry on sea winds.

Salt air is a phenomenon of the physical world that exists in three states of matter. Humidity drenches the body, lathering the skin in slick moisture. Tiny flecks of dusty salt cake and layer on exposed flesh as the heat evaporates the ocean spray. My hair clumped and tangled in thick bands, whipping around in the cross winds.

In every direction my view was undisturbed beauty straight to the horizon. Far out to infinity where leviathans lurked to devour unsuspecting ancient sailors at the end of the world, the glassy shelf of turquoise and sapphire undulated to its own rhythm. The faint screech of gulls and pelicans warned of nearby land, but we were delaying our return to civilization, making a leisurely nine knots.

The sun was rising on its steady cosmic path, not yet at full height, but casting a cautious wash of light from the east. The early hours of the morning had been spent catching baitfish with lures and whatever bits of food we could spare to the ocean. Now, as sailed toward home, I set the outriggers to troll for tuna, dolphin (mahi mahi), and grouper with our sacrifice of ballyhoo.

The roughly seventy-mile sail to Garden Key in the Dry Tortugas National Park was mostly a pleasant one. We were making an easy ten knots for most of the journey with favorable winds. A quick squall delayed our travel while Edward clung to the wheel, eyes set to the depth finder as he sought to keep us on course and off the threatening crops of reefs, but we managed well enough.

The storm had tossed us closer to East Key than was comfortable. In the pass between the Marquesas Keys and Tortugas, jagged reefs emerge suddenly. Depths change erratically. When the tides work against you and prevailing winds at 15 to 20 knots capture the sails to list the boat against mischievous waves, it is easy to drift into treacherous territory where running aground is a sobering possibility.

Under no circumstances does one wish to run aground in protected waters. First, there is the obvious danger of putting your life at the mercy of relentless tides that batter the hull toward a total loss. Second, you may live to prefer sinking if the Coast Guard reaches you. Not only must you suffer the ride home under stern glares—perhaps in handcuffs—but also your vessel will be seized for the trouble. Add to that the steep fines…well, just don't do it.

Edward handled himself well through the roughest stretch, only occasionally clipping his orders as he commanded me about the deck. Once anchored on the leeward side of the island grouping, our experience improved long enough to enjoy a few excursions. We explored the Fort Jefferson ruins, enjoyed light meals on the deck of Elizabeth, and reveled under the sunset.

"Back off." I smacked Edward's hand away as I set a ballyhoo on the line to prepare our outriggers from the stern.

Above us, the sails were tight and tugging us along toward our home port. Edward, dressed only in a pair of cargo shorts that hung low on his hips, glowered at me as I angled my body to deter his interruption. It wasn't impatience for food that had him repeatedly snatching at my hooks.

"Just let me do it," he ordered roughly. His arm reached over my shoulder to grab the bait from my fingers but I sidestepped his attempt.

"Not a chance."

"Don't make me pull the captain card."

"Please. If you want anything but lunch meat and crackers, you'll let me set the lines." The slippery fish dangled freely on the hook as I took a step back to extend my arm and cast the line out.

"Bella…" He groaned but otherwise edited himself as I completed the task.

"I guess we found something you can't do." I smiled teasingly as I bent over the starboard edge of the boat to wet my hands in the spray of our wake before wiping the fish remnants on a rag.

"I can fish just fine." Edward glared at me defiantly, displaying the symptoms of his wounded male ego. Where matters of sustenance were involved, I had no sympathy for him.

"Yes, you physically can," I agreed. "But you suck at it." He narrowed his threateningly severe eyes in challenge, to which I popped one shoulder and stepped around him. "Sorry, skipper. It's true. I've got the touch. You just…don't."

He contemplated me for a moment, following behind as I briefly went below to retrieve a thermos of water. We'd been conserving, but with land coming into view soon, it was safe to take a larger than normal dose. The Dry Tortugas, named twice, were partially called as such for the lack of fresh water anywhere in the seven-island group. All water for washing, bathing, drinking, and sanitation had to be stored on board for the five-day trip.

"If you're insistent, love," Edward caged me against the one side of the stairs as I tried to make my way topside, "perhaps I should just kick back and let my woman bring me my meal."

"Funny," I answered in a disapproving tone. Edward smirked crookedly, licking his lips. My eyes followed his tongue as my body responded to his predatory capture. He pressed himself against me, pushing me against the interior wall of the cabin.

"Someone should be at the wheel," he whispered against my ear. Gently, teasingly, Edward trailed his soft lips down my neck to nibble at my shoulder.

"It's your watch," I breathed. I wove my hands around his back to grip the taut muscles that flexed as the boat bounced and swayed on the tide.

"I want to fuck you at the wheel, Bella."

"I think my navigating abilities would be greatly hindered," I hedged. If he pressed the issue there wouldn't be much resolve in me to refuse. My body was continuously desperate to be under him, around him, filled with him. Our attraction was fierce and insatiable, rarely relenting long enough for either of us to function as independent people.

It some sense, our relationship wasn't strictly healthy by conventional standards. In the short time we'd been a couple, codependency had become apparent between us. We were both ravaged, damaged individuals with vast assortments of baggage that included abandonment issues among more violent traumas. Neither of us was quick to trust. Finding comfort and familiarity in each other, we'd quickly grown to rely on that connection. Short periods out of physical contact left both of us edgy and agitated, moods that relieved themselves frequently in hurried, rough, greedy acts of intimacy. It was our rhythm: glances at calm and bouts of hungry consumption.

The last five days were blissfully therapeutic, or perhaps more aptly a five-day binge on our narcotic-like habit. We exhibited all of the signs of addition, including a refusal to get clean.

Edward pressed his hips against mine as he kissed across my shoulder. His fingers slipped behind me to tightly squeeze my ass in command. I gave up my short-lived standoff and allowed him to pick me up, wrapping my legs around his waist. It was a tight fit to slip up the narrow stairs to the deck, but Edward had steady sea legs and easily managed the short journey to the wheel. I was set on my feet and quickly spun to face the bow.

Without hesitation, I checked our heading and made the necessary course corrections to put Elizabeth back on target to skirt the Mule Keys toward Key West. In turn, Edward busied himself with lavishing any area of exposed flesh with his luscious lips and devious tongue. Still clothed, I was already having a difficult time keeping my eyes open and set on the horizon. My hand-eye coordination was minimal at best.

"You know this really isn't going to happen, right?" I peered over my shoulder and was punished with a sharp bite on my neck.

"Don't tease me," Edward growled. He clasped my hips in his powerful grip and thrust his erection against my backside.

"Not teasing." I glanced back at our outriggers and back to Edward. "Someone's got to keep an eye on the lines."

"Leave them. We'll be back at the docks in a few hours, we'll eat after we've worked up an appetite."

"We'll also be in shot of other boats," I reminded him. "Do you want fishing charters full of dirty old men training their binoculars on your naked girlfriend?"

"I'll be quick." Edward's fingers moved to my shorts and tugged to free the button and zipper.

"Lucky Emmett wasn't around to hear that," I chuckled. Admittedly, I was trying to kill his lusty mood. Not that I didn't enjoy the naughty notion of sex at the wheel of his sailboat, but it just wasn't practical at the moment. The closer we got to land, the more alert we needed to be. Even with a depth finder, it was easy to come upon reefs too quickly to make a correction.

Edward slid his hand beneath my shorts, cupping my sex as he continued to seduce me with his devilish mouth. Reflexively my thighs clenched around his hand and my back arched toward his familiar touch. His bare chest pressed against my back and the scent of Edward mixed with the fresh ocean breeze was the purest aphrodisiac. My skin, damp with sweat and flushed in want, tingled for Edward.

"Baby…" The word was supposed to be a warning, but the sound emerged as a needy breath while his fingers slid between my slick folds to tease and ready me.

"You want me," Edward purred at my ear. He spread my moisture; rubbing circles against my clit and making my ordinarily sure sea legs tremble. "You're wet for me, love."

Behind me, I felt Edward unfasten his shorts. With one foot he spread my stance. His hand urged my backside toward him and pushed my shorts down "Six degrees east, love."

"Okay," I whispered, not comprehending the statement, but answering in the affirmative automatically.

Edward slid his hard length between my parted legs to coat himself in my moisture. With one hand banded around my stomach, he gently pushed into me, both of us moaning at the pleasurable sense of connection.

"Your heading," he whispered. "Six degrees east."

I was lost to the wind brushing against my face, the gentle movement of the boat across the swells, and the feel of Edward fully sheathed inside me. Keeping myself upright meant a death grip on the wheel and rhythmically clenching around Edward's cock for balance.

He reached out with one hand and turned the wheel toward the east to make the course correction. I finally understood he was trying to navigate us back to our intended goal, but my conscious mind was far too displaced to such concerns.

With deliberate and steady strokes, Edward moved inside me at a gentle pace. I hugged the wheel, reminding myself to monitor the compass and watch for changes in the color of the waters ahead that would warn of shallow depths approaching.

As he moved, Edward kissed across my neck and shoulders, keeping me secure in him arms while whispering his affection. This was our last grasp of wild freedom that the open ocean provided. I felt rejuvenated, revitalized; coming home with a reinvigorated spirit more like the girl I'd been before nightmares stripped my enjoyment of even my favorite activities.

But we weren't thinking about that anymore.

I was determined to put it far into the back of my mind and lock it up tight behind a lead door, in a vault, never to bother me again. Forget the combination, toss the key, and delete the information with every passing day.

"Come back to me, angel." Edward's soft voice, smooth like slowly dripping caramel, slipped past my internal ramblings.

"I'm here," I panted in response. He knew me too well not to notice when I'd drifted beyond our intimacy to languish somewhere in my own mind. He understood emotional distraction that separated two people, even in the same room, as well as I did. Instead of growing frustrated with my intermittent behavior, he simply held out his hand to pull me back in the now.

The now is where I wanted to live, with him.

As I spotted the first tiny white dot on the horizon, Edward swiveled his hips and slid his fingers down to coax me toward climax. I surrendered to him, forcing all other thoughts away and feeling only his hard body caging me against the wheel, the heat of the sun warming our entwined bodies, and the delightful friction and deep penetration of Edward making love to me.

My head fell back against his shoulder as I cried out his name in satisfaction. My legs quivered as my orgasm shook through my body. I clenched convulsively around Edward's throbbing cock. He clutched my hips firmly, thrusting inside me in several deep, hard strokes until he groaned out some unintelligible utterance that might have been my name. Edward spilled into me, holding me tightly against his body while we both panted heavy breaths and slowly descended from our shared high.

"Best five days of my life, angel."

I reached my hand up and cradled Edward's head against my shoulder, gently scratching my nails across his scalp as he hummed in response. "Ditto."

Reality loomed in the distance, and I briefly entertained the thought of bringing her about and heading back out to simpler latitudes and far less inhabited spots of land.

If only our sails could carry us back in time.

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**End notes:** Anyone got a guess about the title? I'd love to hear your predictions for this story.


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**Chapter Notes: **Started a thread over on the Twilighted forum for UtBM and LC. Go check it out if you are so inclined. Link is in my profile.

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**"Smack a shark?"**

**Chapter 2**

Edward and I were exhausted when we reached _Elizabeth_'s slip and tied up. It took a few hours to get her washed down and squared away, all the while there was a present sense of apprehension between us. Though it was an understood inevitability, stepping foot on the docks meant admitting that our sojourn was at an end. Questions and responsibilities were waiting for us on dry land. Decisions needed attention, no matter how sincerely we wished to push off the choices and surrender to idleness.

Waiting for us at the house, Emmett and Jasper took over the task of cleaning and grilling our fresh catch for dinner. As we all gathered around the kitchen table to eat, Alice peppered us with questions about every detail of our trip. I glossed over the part where Edward's apparent lack of talent for fishing was discovered. No sense in extinguishing her belief that Edward was an expert at everything.

"You didn't tell Alice about snorkeling Windjammer," Edward prodded with a smirk. He draped his arm over the back of my chair, teasing the nape of my neck and tangling his fingers in my hair.

I knew what he was getting at and refused to take the bait. "Yeah, it was great." Alice watched me expectantly. "It is this old iron-hulled cargo ship that wrecked in the early 1900s on its way to Montevideo. What's it called?"

"_Avanti_," Edward answered me.

"Right. But see, it was sold a few times so it was renamed. It was the _Killean_ and then the…"

"_Antonin_," Edward offered as I waved my hand for him to fill in the blank.

"Exactly. It's considered bad luck to rename a vessel."

"And?" Alice's expression was disapproving. Apparently she wasn't nearly as interested in an academic explanation.

"Well, you can dive or snorkel around and sort of poke in and out of little spaces. You can hardly tell parts of the ship from the rest of the reef, but there are all kinds of coral formations and fish—"

"Barracuda." I peered at Edward out of the corner of my eye, narrowing my vision in his direction.

"And sergeant majors, parrot fish—"

"She freaked, didn't she?" Emmett put on a wide smile, grinning knowingly at my exasperated expression. Jasper shared a similarly conspiratorial smirk.

"No," I snapped at him.

"Shot right back to the surface," Edward chuckled. I slumped back in my chair, glaring at him. "She ditched me the second she found a little hole she thought she could fit through to get inside a section of the hull. I held my breath and just drifted around under the surface waiting on her. When she came back out, she was frantically kicking to the surface."

"I wasn't frantic," I muttered. "That thing attacked me."

"I thought you were suffocating." Edward pulled me closer to his side, but that irritating smirk was still in place.

"Bella grows gills underwater," Jasper said. "She can stay down on one breath for…what?"

"Swimming? Around four or five minutes. Longer if I stay still."

"That's impossible," Alice chimed in. "Three minutes without air. Three days without water, and three weeks without food."

"Not impossible," Edward asserted. "The world record is more than twenty minutes."

"Really," Jasper defended me. "I've seen it."

I furrowed my brow as I appraised Edward. "You knew that off the top of your head?"

"You're surprised?"

"Skeptical," I grinned; hoping that I'd caught him. "Emmett, look it up." He pulled out his phone, tapping away in search of the information while Jasper spoke.

"When we were kids, we'd have contests to see who could stay down longer." Jasper nudged Emm sitting next to him. "Emmett blacked out because he refused to let her win."

"Yeah, and she would have left my ass there just to prove a point," Emmett replied. "This girl will swim with sharks, but she's scared shitless of barracuda."

"They're mean," I asserted. "And they love people. They're really curious," I explained to Alice, "so they'll come right up to you, where sharks are totally uninterested in humans most of the time. Anyway, you just smack them in the nose with your fin and they leave you alone. You're much more likely to be bitten by a barracuda than a shark on these reefs."

"Smack a shark?" Alice's eyes widened, and then turned skeptical as she looked to Jasper for confirmation.

"It works," he shrugged. "You can punch it if you want to stick our hand out there, but better to lose a fin than an arm."

"Jazz, tell her about—" Emmett perked up, his dimples creased around his excited smile.

"Right, right." He sat up, leaning with his elbows on the table to settle in for the story. "So we went out from Key Largo to dive the _Spiegel Grove_."

I smirked to myself, understanding the story ahead of us. I settled in to let the boys tell it while I slid my hand over Edward's thigh. He leaned toward me, pressing a kiss to my temple.

"It's the largest ship ever sunk to create an artificial reef," Jasper continued. "My dad wouldn't let me do a wreck dive until I was eighteen, so that's where the three of us went on my birthday."

"Visibility was shit," Emmett interjected. "There was a storm that morning and it churned up the floor, we were already out there and _somebody_ threw a fit about going home."

"It wasn't a fit," I argued. "I just told the captain that if the rest of you pussies were too chicken to get in, I'd catch a ride with another boat."

"See what I put up with?" Emmett whined, looking to at his phone but speaking to Edward. "She's abusive." He slid his phone over the table, showing me the verdict. "Twenty minutes and ten seconds."

"Damn." I shoved the phone back at him. Edward leaned in, kissing my neck and whispering, "I told you so."

"Anyway," Jasper began again, "we get down there and can hardly see four feet in front of us. We've got our dive lights and everything, but it is still totally pointless. Of course, Bella just starts swimming off over the deck before either of us have figured out which way we're pointed." Jasper paused, shooting me a glare. "Bella isn't great at the buddy system."

"Whatever," I shrugged. "I knew you'd follow me if I just went ahead. I could spend half the dive waiting around for Emmett to fuck with his mask."

"So, we go swimming after her and find her poking her head into all these little crevices and holes in the reef. She's waving her hands around and pointing at whatever she's finding, but like I said, we couldn't see much. We're down there for a while exploring when the tide picks up and the current starts trying to shove us off the wreck. I'm trying to get Bella's attention so she'll surface with us, but every time I get within an arm's reach of her she darts off again. I'm kicking like mad just to stay near her against the current."

"I'm the one that see's it coming," Emmett announced proudly. He sat up and leaned across the table to speak menacingly for Alice's amusement. "At first it was just a dark spot a few yards away. There were six other divers in the water from our boat, so I figured it was just one of them. It was swimming around, back and forth, and getting closer. It was only six feet from Bella when I finally saw it clearly."

"What was it?" Alice leaned in with wide eyes locked on Emmett. Edward looked down at me with an interested glance.

"An eight-foot bull shark swam up and headbutted her tank," he answered. "He approached slowly, and me and Jazz were just being real still. I mean, I was in shock for a second because I'd never seen any shark that big up close in open water. She was totally oblivious until it hit the tank and turned her over. Bella kinda panicked for a second—"

"I didn't panic," I corrected. "I was pissed because I thought it was you messing around," I nodded at Emmett.

"So she chucked her dive light at it," he laughed.

"At you," I repeated.

"At an eight-foot shark," Jasper corrected again.

"Bella!" Alice had a moment of terror before giggling effervescently. "What happened?"

"She scared the hell out of it," Emmett blurted out between belly rolling laughs, "it took off."

"Wow." Alice sat back, shaking her head. "You're fearless," she mumbled. "I still get can't go near a swimming pool, much less the ocean."

All humor was sapped from the air around us. Edward reached out with one hand, taking his sister's tiny fingers in his palm. I should have asked, or guessed, but I had no idea that Alice was afraid of water since her accident.

"She's afraid of barracudas." Emmett, always well intentioned, was oblivious.

"No." Alice's expression turned serious as her eyes sort of glossed over like she was somewhere else. "Everything you've been through. What happened in the hospital…"

"Alice," Edward spoke gently, but it was a clear warning.

"It's fine." I stood and started gathering our plates to carry to the sink.

"I mean it, Bella." I didn't acknowledge her, but started rinsing dishes in the sink to distract my mind from conjuring up the very recent memories of James' blood spewing over me, and his lifeless body as the hospital staff crouched around him on the floor. "You're one of the bravest people I know. Just like my brother."

I turned back to the table, meeting Alice's sincere eyes. At first, I didn't have anything to say. She looked almost sad, perhaps a little for me, for herself, and for Edward. Jasper put his arm around her, rubbing her shoulder comfortingly.

Uncertain glances were passed around the table. I knew it wasn't Alice's intention to make the atmosphere uncomfortable. We'd all been through a lot and were likely only just starting to process the severity of it. Having to hear about Edward's fight with James after the fact probably terrified Alice. Yeah, she had her aunt and uncle in Boston—her mother was…not really involved. Edward was her closest family and best friend. I couldn't imagine what I'd do if Emmett or Jasper were taken from me and I was helpless to do anything about it.

Our little band of misfits had endured quite enough sorrow for a lifetime. Maybe it wasn't the clinically healthy thing to do, but I decided it was time we put it all behind us. If you can't laugh, what's the point in surviving to tell the tale?

"The shark started it," I deadpanned. The silence immediately following was awkward for several seconds.

Emmett cracked first. He bellowed a booming laugh, leaning back in his chair. The front legs lifted off the tile floor, the back legs tilting, and then he was sprawled out and rolling in laughter.

The scene of the over-grown child brought me to tears and I doubled over, hugging my stomach as I laughed freely. Alice giggled, burring her face in Jasper's shoulder and he joined in. The sound of a little levity was far more satisfying.

"She's right," Edward whispered. I didn't even hear him get up, but he was standing in front of me when I straightened up and opened my eyes. I clamped my mouth shut and pulled my bottom lip between my teeth. The look of pride and adoration in Edward's eyes left me speechless. Gently, he placed a soft kiss on my forehead.

"Ice cream!" Alice shouted suddenly. "I want ice cream and a really bad movie."

"Then Emmett's your man," I answered her.

If only such simple things could fill deeper wounds.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Upon returning to work at the gym, I found that the repetitive nature of my job and the familiar surrounding had an unexpectedly positive effect on my overall mood. Mundane things like processing payroll and outgoing accounts to the sounds of weights clinking and male grunts was a pleasantly distracting task, but it was sliding effortlessly into my routine that allowed for the feeling I'd never left. It never happened. Case closed. If only that feeling could last.

A little before noon, Emmett plopped down in one of the office chairs in front of my/his desk. For several seconds, he just looked at me expectantly. I considered putting a jar of treats on the desk to toss at him.

"Yes?" I sat back, waiting for him to give a reason for the visit. Again, he was quiet for an unusually long period—long for Emmett, anyway. "Did Timmy fall in a well?"

"You just let me know when you've run out of one-liners." Emmett crossed his arms, kicking back with his feet on the edge of the desk.

"I don't follow."

"You've done nothing but crack jokes since we got back from Jersey. So, when you've run out of ways to dodge the subject, I'm ready to talk."

"Emm…" I sighed, reflexively running my hand through my hair. That tick had stuck, apparently.

"You're on my dime, right? Well, I'm your boss and I'm telling to you talk."

"Did you switch bodies with Jasper?" Emmett was never the aggressive type with me. He was far more likely to give in to my silly antics or playfulness than actually force me to have unpleasant discussions.

"You want to get it from him? I'll be easier on you." His dark eyes were unwavering in their demand. I felt myself shrinking by inches every second he stared me down. It was a perfect Jasper impression.

"What do you want to hear? I'm over it. It's done. I just want to move on." I took an involuntary deep breath, which gave away the stress building in my muscles. I didn't like being pinned down. I didn't like being confronted on a subject I'd prefer that everyone just ignore. Emmett knew that as well as anyone. A new sort of familiarity descended on this conversation. One I wasn't fond of at all.

His face softened as he lowered his voice. "Are you still having nightmares?"

I wanted to lie to him and tell him that I'd been magically cured. Like reliving such an eerily similar situation had dislodged my PTSD. I even hated referring to it as a real problem. Giving it an official name lends gravity to what manifests as anxiety in public and subconscious activity at night.

"A few," I confessed, letting my head fall back against the chair as I closed my eyes. "But not about Mike. I guess I only have room for one attempted murder at a time."

"You did it again," Emmett accused. I huffed a breath and rolled my eyes under my closed lids. It hurt, actually. I rubbed at them and blinked several times to get rid of the weird ache that followed. Don't try that again.

"She's just like her dad." Jasper entered the office and closed the door behind him before taking a seat next to Emmett. I refused to look directly at him. Jasper's soulful blue eyes were just as penetrating as Edward's and twice as likely to bring me to tears.

"Is this an intervention?" I stared at the patterns in the wood grain of the door behind them and contemplated making a run for it. What were the chances I could slip past both of them?

"Do you need one?" Jasper's impassive expression gnawed at me, ripping away at the everything-is-fine mask I had been working hard to maintain.

"I need not to be treated like I'm going to crack and just fall off the deep end at any moment," I blurted out with a frustrated huff. "I need you two to not treat me with kid gloves. I'm not fragile and I'm not a ticking time bomb."

Unimpressed, Jasper shifted in his seat and tilted to put himself in my line of sight. "So you're just going to internalize until you've packed it all so tight that you implode in on yourself?"

"Yep," I snapped sarcastically.

"Solid plan," Emmett scoffed. He uncrossed his elevated legs and crossed them again the opposite way. Oh yes, he was settling in for the long haul.

"You hungry, Emm?" I raised a coaxing eyebrow, tempting him like a puppy to his bowl.

"I can wait." He shrugged, glancing off in a show of disinterest. I smacked my head to the desk and groaned. I reminded myself to start locking the office.

"Just say what you want to say and let's get this over with," I implored them. "Unless you've come to get your jollies out of torturing me."

"I just want you to be honest," Jasper replied softly. "I have no idea what's going on in your head. You refuse to talk about any of it. I knew you needed some time, and I agreed it was a good idea for you to get away for a bit once you were up and moving around again, but now that you've had some time…" Jasper paused, running his hands over his face. "Just talk to us, Bella. I'll stop worrying if you'll just talk about it."

I don't know what set me off. Maybe the stresses of being backed into a corner or just the fact that Emmett and Jasper were pushing me to pry open the subject. In either case, the response was instinctual and erupted unhindered. My head snapped up and I felt my face flame as I set him eyes on Jasper.

"Fine. Honest. Here goes. You lied to me. You purposefully deceived me into leaving the party early that night so you three could go hunt down James. You let Edward in a room with a psycho with a loaded gun." If Edward had died while I was asleep in a suite twenty stories above him… "I would never have forgiven you for that, just so you know. And neither would Alice. Oh yeah, and you kept Henry a secret from me."

I glared at him, seeing right through the unaffected arrangement of his features and knowing that I'd caught him off guard. "Is that what you want? You want me to blame you so you can beat yourself up? Yes, for all the trouble you three went to, it happened again. I'm a hell of a lot better at taking care of myself. I was gone for two years and not once did someone almost kill me. Okay? I really fucking wish that everyone would stop assuming what's best for me and just leave me the hell alone."

With that, I stomped out of the office and shoved past the front doors to pace back and forth through the parking lot. I kicked a few tiny pieces of loose gravel, which was completely unsatisfying. There was nothing outside that looked any better for throwing, but going back in now would look silly. Yeah, because another tantrum wasn't bad enough. Good to know that side effect hadn't subsided.

I was alone with my thoughts and the noises of the street for several minutes before I glanced up to see Jasper and Emmett leaning against the front of the building.

"Feel better?" I snarled at the sound of humor in Emmett's voice.

"No," I snapped at him, continuing to pace while I took short breaths through my nose.

"You want to hit something?

I stopped, rounded on them, and glared hard. "Yes." Emmett smiled, nodding toward the doors to urge me inside. They followed as I made a quick path to one of the heavy bags. I didn't bother taping my hands, just picking a pair of gloves off the shelf near by and sliding them on. Emmett stood behind the bag to steady it while Jasper stood off to the side and watched as I launched my fists forward.

"Elbow up," Jasper barked. I did as he said, raising my right elbow to improve my angle as I swung at the bag. "Move your feet." Again, I reacted in compliance to his order.

It wasn't long before sweat dripped into my eyes and my hands were slippery in my gloves. My shoulders burned in that painfully pleasant way that meant I was still alive, not dead yet and not out. And so we continued like that until I was panting for air and could no longer lift my arms. My entire upper body trembled with the echo of dozens of hard impacts against the unforgiving bag. Letting out one last frustrated scream, I jerked my knee into the bag and then pushed away.

Exhausted, I slumped to the floor and put my head between my legs. Emmett took up a spot on the mat next to me while Jasper tugged my hands into his lap to remove the gloves from my swollen hands. Even my palms gasped for breath once they were free of the suffocating material.

"Now do you feel better?" I looked up under my lashes at Emmett's wide grin.

"Yes." I fell back, splayed out on the ground with my eyes closed and my chest rhythmically reaching for the ceiling. "I'm sorry."

"Not yet," Emmett chuckled.

Jasper stood, glaring down at me look that meant nothing good. "Get up," he ordered. "I'm not done with you. You're going in the cage."

Who said hitting never solved anything?


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Under the full moon that cast silvery light against the black ocean, _Delaney_ skipped over peaks and thumped into troughs. Each time the little fishing boat bottomed out, the hull shuddered and my back protested. Jasper had done a number on me in the cage. My eyelashes and toenails hurt. I stood at the bow tracing imaginary patterns in the stars overhead and searching for constellations that I recognized.

The first time I saw the Southern Cross I was on a recreation charter out of San Cristóbal in the Galapagos. By no means was it my intended destination, but a fortunate turn of events led me to Ecuador from Costa Rica. Chile should have been my next stop.

The plan at the time, my mission, was to get as far south as possible. Without the means to get myself on a boat to the Antarctic, Chile was the closest I could feasibly manage. Instead, I found myself cruising through the islands of Darwin as a translator for some Canadian tourists I'd met in a bar in Guayaquil.

It is an undisputable fact that you cannot look at the constellation without hearing Crosby, Stills, & Nash singing in your head. Jimmy Buffett, if you prefer the cover. In either case, I didn't have some great understanding of why I'd found myself on that boat and under that sky. Instead, I kept my eyes trained to the constellation as we motored to Floreana Island. My experience there was a pleasant one.

First, there was Post Office Bay. Whalers and English sailors once used a wooden barrel to pass letters in their travels. Today, visitors from all over the world leave postcards and letters without postage that are then picked up by other tourists to be delivered along their way home or next destination. I took three such letters with me, which were my compass pointing me to the next adventure on my sabbatical from home: Berlin, Paris, and London. Jasper and Emmett received their letters while I was in a tavern in Hamburg; that was three months later.

I played soccer, badly, with a few of the locals from the island. Natives, actually. Everyone living in the Galapagos was born there as no outsiders are permitted to stay. Floreana Island is perhaps the most interesting and scandalous in the archipelago. In 1929, a German couple settled on the tiny spit of land and sent word back to the fatherland encouraging others to make the trek. Three years later, Heinz and Margaret Wittmer arrived with their son. Their next child, also a boy, was the first to be born on the island. In short order, more German compatriots took up residence, but a series of strange deaths and disappearances left Margaret Wittmer the sole survivor. Well, her and the tortoise pet of the "Baroness" Wagner Bosquet.

She was a resilient and resourceful woman and did what any industrious suffragette would. She opened a hotel. You can buy a 40-ounce beer at her inn, which is still run by her descendent, for $1.50. On the lawn that overlooks the ocean, visitors can sit and observe the giant Floreana tortoise that has long outlived its German caretakers. I bought her book while I was there, _Floreana: A Woman's Pilgrimage to the Galapagos_. I still haven't brought myself to read it. In a strange way, I almost don't want to know. The Galapagos, while thrilling and wondrous, were not my final destination. I was bound for other lands and still more new faces.

Tonight, as I felt Jasper throttle back on the engine and _Delaney_ pitched nose down into the soft swells, I took a breath and accepted the purpose of the trip. I still wasn't convinced that the positive effects of this therapeutic endeavor would outweigh the negatives, but I had agreed to try. A gesture needed to be made, for the three of us, and it had to be made here.

Emmett stood behind me and wrapped both of his arms around my shoulders to hug me against his chest. Not a word had been spoken since we left the docks. I certainly had run out of pithy retorts or sarcastic jokes. Now wasn't the time. Silence was better. And so, for several minutes, the three of us gazed out into the vast void of blackness.

In the right lack of any other illumination, and if you fix your eyes directly on the distant horizon, it is nearly impossible to discern the sky from the ocean below. The reflection of the stars on the undulating waters creates a strange middle world where direction is meaningless. I thought, in the quiet that spread out from our vessel, about stepping out into that strange infinity and where I might find myself right side up. Would I fall into the murky depths of ocean or drift into the vacuum of space?

Even describing it as a vacuum seems wrong and backward now. The universe, after all, is expanding, not contracting in on itself. We will all die in a quite, frozen whimper as planets are torn from their heat-giving stars. The fantastic cosmic force that burst the universe into existence is not slowing, but speeding. The expansive mystery of space is growing ever larger and pushing us all out from each other. Dark energy is what they call it. An invisible force that pushes all matter out, while dark matter attempts to maintain the structure.

Every day, we grow more separate. Every day, the distance we must cross between us grows larger. If you believe such things, the hope to discover intelligent alien life becomes a more far-fetched mission the more light-years are created between them and us. The universe, in purely scientific terms, doesn't suck. It blows.

My mind was wandering.

The stars, as I received their light and pretended patterns in their arrangement, were just as fictitious in the present as ghosts. Those stars were long dead, phantoms, and nothing more than cosmic memories, like noise stored in the carved rings of ancient pottery. Was that a strange thought?

Jasper came to stand at my side and Emmett shifted to let him join us. With Emm's arm around my shoulder, Jasper wrapped his hand behind my waist. We remained still, planting our feet and letting the tide rock the vessel to its will. The ocean, in all its undeterred power, set the rhythm of my breathing, slowing my heart to a steady and calm pace.

Not for the last time, it occurred to me that I would have been justified to develop a fear of the dark. It was, after all, the blanket of night that had allowed Mike to creep into my bedroom and bludgeon me nearly to death. It was lack of light that impaired my vision to profess to accurately identify my attacker. If not for the dark, all of the suffering and insecurity could have been avoided.

I should have learned to detest the night, to shun it and call it foul. Instead, I embraced it. In a way, I found it peaceful and uncomplicated. What's more, it could be just as effective at hiding me. There is no law that states only those with bad intentions can make use of the night. We had made us of it, quite fittingly, as Jasper and Emmett tossed Mike's dead and mutilated body overboard to surrender him to the sea.

There was no way to say for certain that we were drifting over his final resting place. I hoped he'd never find rest. Jasper set us out on the same heading he'd taken so long ago and cut the engine at the same coordinates where Mike's body was unceremoniously discarded. He had no family looking for him. From my limited understanding, his father was never in the picture and his mother skipped bail several years ago after being picked up on her third DUI. He was a poster child for how a kid, like any other on the surface, goes bad. I spent no time pitying him. Everyone has a choice in life. He chose wrong.

"It's really over," I murmured to myself as my eyes fell to the water and I imagined the splash his wrapped body made before it sank below heavy sea. "Thank you. Both of you. I'd never have survived this long without you."

Jasper squeezed me tighter and tilted his head to rest on top of mine. "I only wish I'd done it myself."

"I should have broken his neck that night at Tony's," Emmett growled. I felt the muscles in his arm tense and flex around me.

"We're not doing that anymore," I answered to both of them. "No more regrets. Ever. From this point forward we have a clean slate. I'm not spending another second doing anything but what I explicitly want to do." I looked between my brothers, both shrouded in shadows. "We don't have time to do any less."


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

So, I'll admit, I'm writing through the cement block between me and inspiration. I know where this story is going to end, but getting there is getting more convoluted in my mind. Also, this is probably a good time to warn you that the low angst rating of the last book will be thoroughly shattered in this one. Prepare yourselves for Edward and Bella being stupid and behaving badly. Okay? Here we go...

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Over the next several weeks, I stared at my life like a blank piece of paper. Not a fresh piece, clean and unmarked, but a tattered and worn sheet with spaces rubbed raw from an eraser and blemishes still visible in the light. But it was blank, waiting for something—a decision.

Sometimes that piece of paper more closely resembled a map or nautical chart with lines demarcating boundaries and distant territories. I considered the vast distances I'd traveled in search of or hiding from myself. Many of the earliest acquaintances had already faded from memory. Images and vivid recollections of activities included only vague pictures of real people. I was always terrible with names, so those were lost first. Only a select few had occupied my world long enough to become engrained in my permanent storage.

For a moment, my memory dropped me back into a tiny pub in London, but I turned around and walked back out, closing the door behind me and locking it tight. Done. Over.

Where was I going next?

As if he'd heard my question, Edward lowered his lips to my ear and murmured softly against my skin. "Where are you, love?"

I reached for my beer and took a swig as I surreptitiously scanned the table through narrow eyes to see my blankness had gone unnoticed by the others. The room was loud, full with the dull roar of numerous conversations and the tracked house music over the sound system.

Setting my beer back down in the ring of condensation that stained the wooden table, I slid my hand to Edward's thigh and smiled reassuringly. "Right here with you."

He paused in appraisal of me, unconvinced, but offered me a tender kiss anyway. I licked across his bottom lip, nipping at it when he pulled back to break our contact. Edward groaned seductively, lingering over my lips. His warm breath, thick with the scent of honey whisky, wafted over my face. My hand slid further up his thigh, but Edward gripped my wrist tightly to still the advance of my intention.

"Bella," he said my name in dark, gravelly warning. I shrugged, a wry smile—totally lacking in remorse—playing on the lips that weren't nearly done with him.

I slid to the edge of my chair, tilting my head to whisper in his ear as I squeezed the hard muscles beneath my palm. "I want to taste you," I confessed.

"Fuck," he hissed.

"After I suck you off." I took his earlobe between my teeth and bit sharply before soothing the sting with my tongue.

"I'm out," Emmett announced loudly, planting his empty beer bottle on the table along with our growing collection. "You're up, Eddie."

"Call me that again and I'll piss in your beer," Edward snarled at him. Emmett guffawed boisterously, wagging his eyebrows in challenge. When I chuckled at his playfulness and adorable dimples, Edward turned his irritated glare to me.

"You won't win that one, Eddie. She thinks I'm hilarious." Emmett leaned back, confidently spurring on my poor attempt at stifling my laughter.

"Another one for me," Alice smiled, shaking her empty glass back and forth across the table like it was a broken rattle.

Edward nodded, standing with an unaffected ease that showed no evidence of our conversation or that we were all three rounds into our forth, consecutive night out at Tony's. He yanked me up with him, pushing me through the crowd with his hand clutched possessively on my hip.

Dense or otherwise occupied as I was, it had taken me a solid week before I realized that Jake wasn't just avoiding me. He'd left town shortly after the arrests. His absence meant Jasper and Carla were both picking up extra shifts at the bar to cover the slack. It had been two months since Atlantic City and Russell seemed to be holding out hope that Jake was coming back to clock in any day now. There was no shortage of potential bartenders inquiring about the gig, but Russ refused to acknowledge that there was an opening. Apparently he'd grown fond of Jake.

I couldn't help but see the entire situation for what it was: I'd run Jake out of town and away from his home. It was my fault. To cover my ass and put to rest a long-standing inconvenience in my life, I sold out Jacob's family. Granted, Paul and the rest of the somehow-related pack fucking deserved every shower rendezvous they'd endure in prison, but how could Jacob feel anything else but unwelcome and shunned for his association?

Edward's restless nature had finally broken him down after only a couple of weeks. He agreed to take an exhibition fight in May. If the president of the league were suitably impressed with his performance, Edward would be offered a three-fight contract for the next twelve months. That meant he and Jasper were back at the gym twelve hours every weekday before Jazz clocked in at Tony's. The only way Alice got to see him was either asleep or at the bar, so the rest of us came to keep her company while she waited for his periodic breaks.

Total all of that with my new vigor for living as thoroughly and passionately in the now as possible…well, I was drunk and horny on most nights by the time Edward pressed me into his bed or mine. Tonight, aided by a few fingers of tequila, I was positively randy. Only trouble was that Edward was living on a one-drink maximum during training weeks. Sober people are a real buzz kill.

Edward wedged me in front of him at the counter of the bar between several other patrons all vying for attention from the overwhelmed staff. His solid, scorching body pressed against my backside as he leaned over me to catch Jasper's eye. He nodded, quickly discarding two beers to a customer before moving to fill our order. Edward was hard, pressing himself forcefully to my ass as I stretched up on my tiptoes.

"Do you understand how uncomfortable it is to have a hard-on while sitting next to my sister?" Edward's rough, gravely voice dripped with sexual frustration. I liked having that power over him. Not because I was torturing him, but because I was a sure thing and wanted him to take hasty advantage of the invitation.

I peered at him over my shoulder, smiling with wicked intent. Hell, Edward had practically schooled me in such behavior. I fully blamed him for the turn in my demeanor over the last few weeks. "You've created a monster, Cullen. I suggest you find a way to handle her." I pushed my backside against him, grinding on his very stimulating erection.

Jasper returned to us, sliding Alice's cocktail, Emmett's beer, and two waters toward me. I raised an eyebrow at his apparent oversight. "You holding out on me? Where's the good stuff?" He shrugged in answer, quickly turning his attention to another customer and ignoring my scowl.

Edward reached around me and grabbed the two big-kid drinks, leaving the waters for me to carry. "Be a good girl and take it, love."

I snapped my eyes to his, glaring petulantly at his condescending tone. "Want to run that one by me again, Ace?"

With practiced ease, Edward's features shifted darkly. He leaned in, hovering over me as I was pressed with my back to the bar and he invaded my bubble. I sucked in a sharp breath in recognition of the commanding, predatory demeanor that she slid on so readily.

"Appease me, Bella, and I'll let you come tonight." My mouth dropped open, quite certain that I'd heard him correctly, but fully taken aback at his blatant threat.

My chin lifted determinedly, rising to Edward's challenge. "You wouldn't dare."

Edward planted the drinks in his hands back on the bar, thrusting his erection against my stomach and lowering his lips to my neck. He kissed me tenderly and then his teeth pinched a bit of flesh and tugged. "Behave and you won't have to find out."

Abruptly, Edward pulled back. A fiercely serious expression held his features as he pointed a glare that cut straight through me. Forget making it back home, I was melting and damn near quivering right in front of him. Two glasses of water were shoved in my hands. He led us back to our table, where I took up my seat, still in a somewhat stunted state of confusion and instinctive rebellion.

Purposefully, I ignored the water dripping beads of condensation to the wooden tabletop. Edward relaxed next to me, returning his possessive arm to my shoulder as Emmett looked warily at his beer and then to me.

"That took a while," he noted with concern. Edward sat impassive, giving nothing away. "Bells, you'd tell me, right? I'm still your favorite." He held the full bottle up to the light and then sniffed at it.

"Yes, Emmy Bear, you're still my favorite." He winked at me, satisfied. Edward, however, was not pleased. His fingers tangled into my hair and tugged, not harshly, but enough to make his point.

He timed his retort until Emmett had taken a mouthful before saying, "You haven't pissed off your bartender lately, have you?" Emmett's eyes went wide. Horrified, he slammed the full bottle to the table, picked up Alice's empty glass, and spit his swig back out.

"Eww!" Alice squealed.

Edward put on a satisfied, cocky grin. "Don't fuck with me, Emm." Emmett swatted at his tongue, wiping it roughly against his flat palm. I offered him my full glass of water, which he took gratefully, swishing it around in his mouth and spitting back out into the discard glass.

Naturally, I seized the opportunity that Edward had unwittingly provided. I snatched up Emmett's beer and took a heavy swig with my eyes squarely on Edward's.

"Bells, what the fuck?" Emmett looked betrayed. I offered him a sympathetic smile, drained half his beer in one chug, and then handed it back. "I don't think I like you two ganging up on me."

"Not ganging up," I countered. "You fell for it, so take your licks like a man."

"You want something to lick?" He narrowed his dark eyes menacingly and raised his hand. "I've rubbed righty raw."

Swiftly shooting halfway out of his chair to point a finger in Emmett's bemused face, Edward was suddenly and terrifyingly angry. "Shut your goddamn mouth."

"Edward," Alice chided him.

"Hey, baby." I laughed a bit desperately in trying to defuse the outburst of Edward's unwarranted temper. "Relax. I couldn't find Emmett's dick with a flashlight and Sherpa."

"Whoa, truce. Okay?" Emmett put his hands up in a gesture of surrender, but his eyes shifted to mine in search of an explanation. I didn't have one.

Reluctantly, Edward let me pull him back into his seat. I threw myself in his sight line, sitting in his lap and kissing the spot under his jaw that was a tap directly to his libido. With my arms draped around the back of his neck, I felt Edward release the tension in his muscles and grip me tightly. Pulling back from his flesh, I smiled teasingly, drawing that crooked grin from his lips.

See? All better. Whatever the hell that was.

After a moment, Alice piped up with a sudden thought, perhaps meant to offer a change of subject. "Edward, you remember Rose, right?" Edward bristled to Alice's innocent question. Great going.

A defensive pang of jealously spiked but was quickly extinguished as Edward trailed his fingers down my ribs. Okay, that was just a drunken jump to judgment. Still, Rose sounded like a blonde name.

"Regrettably, yes."

"Don't be like that," Alice rolled her eyes. "I don't know why you always have to be such a contemptible ass to my friends."

"Not all. And because, my dear sister," Edward put on a disingenuous smile, "you have a compulsion for surrounding yourself with vapid, scathingly intolerable debutantes." Alice's pointy face scrunched together with furious intent. Actually, she looked downright frightening as she shot daggers at her brother.

"Is she hot?" Emmett really needed to get laid. "I'll be real nice to her if she's got a good rack." Alice smacked his arm, disgusted by his honesty. "What?"

"She's getting married, you Neanderthal."

"Let me guess, snagged herself six figures in a three-piece suit and a house in the south of France?" My eyes widened at Edward, surprised by the sincere depth of his contempt for this Rose chick. He rarely spoke so blatantly ill of anyone who hadn't tried to feel me up, kill me, or hurt Alice.

Alice's glare faltered. Edward was, of course, dead-on. Alice visibly deflated. "Royce King," she answered in what sounded like reluctant confirmation.

If Edward had spontaneously transformed into a sea anemone, I would have been far less shocked. Instead, the self-possessed and usually coolly confident man on whose lap I was perched erupted into uproarious laughter, possibly the loudest and least controlled laughter I'd witnessed from him to this point.

"Please," he struggled to catch his breath while I bounced on his trembling legs, "Alice, tell me you aren't pulling my leg."

"Why is that funny?" Alice tilted her head to the side, looking at Edward as though he were growing antennae.

Emmett puffed out his chest, snickering not at all subtly. "What the hell kind of name is Royce?" He had a point.

"King Consolidated is about to file for bankruptcy. The company has leveraged itself upside down. By the end of the quarter, KC will undergo a hostile takeover, be dismantled for scraps, and the bad debt written off under a series of offshore corporations that don't—in the strictest terms—actually exist."

Shared looks of silent befuddlement passed around the table as all eyes settled on Edward, waiting for the punch line.

"Edward," Alice questioned him cautiously, "how do you know that? Rose hasn't a said a word of this to me. If that's true, I don't think she knows."

"Simple," he smirked, "I'm the one dismantling him."


	6. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

The inevitable questions about _New Moon_ have sprung up for this next part of the story. Here's my answer: Bella and Edward won't cheat and they won't break up. That's all I'm saying, so take it as you will. You might be half right.

* * *

**Chapter 6**

I sat in bewildered awe of Edward's callousness, not especially impressed with his attitude. Ruthlessness in the cage was well justified, even necessary, when an opponent had no qualms about knocking you out cold. Together, Edward and I had faced circumstances that required cold disregard for life, but only in defense of our own and those we loved. However, breaking apart another man's livelihood…why? There was nothing sexy about that.

Alice was right there on the same page, glowering at her brother's total lack of remorse. In fact, Edward looked quite pleased with himself.

"Why would you do that to him?" She waited for a response, and the longer Edward delayed, the more her expression fell in disappointment. That seemed to strike a nerve with Edward and he let out a low sigh.

"Alice, I didn't run his company into the ground. He made a lot of bad investments and borrowed money he couldn't afford when the bottom fell out from under him. KC is more valuable in pieces than it is as a whole. It's a tear-down, you can understand that."

"Fair enough, if that's true, but why are you taking such pleasure in seeing him fail?"

"I have my reasons," he stated with finality. His jaw locked up and I saw the implacable mask slide into place. As far as Edward was concerned, the conversation was over.

I glanced at Emmett, who was clearly pretending not to listen as his eyes locked onto one of the television screens on the far wall playing sports highlights.

Alice's brow furrowed. Her features looked unnatural in such a distressed expression, not like herself. "I have to tell her."

"Tell her not to marry him. Tell her he's broke. But you're prohibited from informing her, and by extension him, of the impending buyout. You know that."

"Sue me," she snapped, crossing her arms. I wondered if this was the sort of family dynamic they'd grown up in. Charlie and I argued about grades and dragging sand in the house. Did the Masen family bicker about insider trading, non-disclosure agreements and litigation?

"Alice." Edward's face softened, gently pleading with his sister. "He's not a good man. If you care about Rosalie, talk her out of it, but you won't save his company. If it isn't me then it will be someone else; that's the way it is."

"And you won't tell me why?"

"I can't," he answered definitively.

…

The unexpected turn of conversation at Tony's had done a number on my libido. By the time we returned to the house around 11:00, there was a strange vibe between Edward and I. Mostly that was on my end. In the course of the night, I'd come to see him quite differently. He hinted at some noble reason why Royce King's demise was well deserved, and I wanted to believe that, but I couldn't escape the sour taste in my mouth left by his apparent cruelty. I was also still working off a good buzz and in no condition to have a serious conversation on the subject.

Edward and I showered separately in my bathroom, going about our nightly routines in not uncomfortable silence. Being around him in domesticated simplicity was easy and completely natural, even if there was less touching than ordinary.

When we were settled in bed, Edward me pulled back against his chest, injecting his leg between mine and wrapping his arm around my stomach. I didn't resist as he pressed tender kisses down my neck and bare skin of my shoulder accessible around my thin camisole. Despite whatever opinions I had on his earlier attitude, I'd never deny the comfort of his body. That was our one rule.

"Touch me," Edward whispered as his tongue laved at the space under my ear. I wrapped my arm over his, across my middle. He stilled, and I felt Edward rise behind me to seek out my eyes. "What's wrong?"

Yeah, I guess that wasn't what he had in mind. My fault, I'd been teasing him all night and then gone cold when he was expecting naughty time. "Nothing." I snuggled into his chest, tightening my grip on his arm to urge him to hold me closer.

"No lies, Bella." Edward pulled me toward him, turning me over until I was looking up at him elevated on one elbow with a crease between his lovely eyes. "You're upset."

"It's nothing. Upset is probably too strong a word. I'm tired and you have to be up early. Let's just sleep." I slid my hand up his bare chest and over his shoulder to coax him down to his pillow. He lowered to lie next to me, unappeased.

"I've upset you," he surmised, reading my face so effortlessly, despite my attempt to appear neutral. "Tell me, love." Subtly disarming me, Edward smoothed his fingers over my cheek and through my hair while delivering a coded message to my body that instructed it to surrender. Damn him.

"If we have this conversation now, it won't end well. I've been drinking and probably don't have any kind of verbal filter tonight. Just let it go."

"I'm well acquainted with your sharp tongue and vicious mouth. I'm sure I'll survive."

"Edward." Exasperatingly stubborn man. Our relationship really was karma or poetic justice. We deserved each other.

"You know I'll get my way. But if you prefer, I won't sleep at all knowing you're unhappy. Consider yourself relieving my pain."

Well hell. What sort of heartless bitch would I be if I said no to that? I puffed out a deep exhalation and dropped my eyes to his chest. "You really were an ass tonight, to Emmett and with Alice. I don't think I like that side of you."

"First," Edward took my chin between his thumb and forefinger to lift my face to his, "I don't care who Emmett is, I won't tolerate him speaking that way to you."

"I told you," I huffed, "it isn't like that with us. He's crude and immature, and that's why I love him. We mess around and rag on each other. That's just the way it is. Besides," I added smugly, "you talk to me that way."

"I've been inside you," he rasped as he grabbed my ass and tugged me closer. "You've made me come while drifting in the middle of ocean. I think that offers me certain privileges."

"I didn't say I didn't like it," I responded coyly. Truthfully, Edward's naughty pillow talk was a turn on.

"But I still treat you with respect, Bella. Always."

"You do," I confirmed. I scratched my nails lightly through the stubble along his jaw, smiling affectionately. "I don't mind you going a little caveman on occasion." Okay, maybe this conversation was reigniting my desire.

Edward smirked that perfectly devilish smile, so naturally I had to kiss him. Of course I did. "Glad that's sorted out. Now, as to your concern over Alice…" Green eyes, bright an expectant in the light of the bedside lamp, stared back at me. Edward was never easily distracted.

"I'm on her side on this one, buddy. I get it, okay? You don't like this chick because she's a gold digger. Fine. Whatever. I think it's a little too easy for you to judge considering you've always had money. But I think Alice is a good judge of character. If Rose is her friend, then you should extend some courtesy. Taking pleasure in the blind fall she's about to take is just a shit thing to do."

"I've extended Rosalie no more than the courtesy she's shown me," he responded roughly. Oh, so there was a story there. "And I didn't say she was a gold digger. If anything, Royce is probably rushing into a wedding in the hopes her family money can bail him out."

I searched him in confusion, not certain where I'd so completely misread the situation. "If she's got money, why the crack about a sugar daddy?"

"She's vain, selfish, materialistic, and generally shallow."

"She's accustomed to a certain lifestyle. You can't exactly fault her for that." Really, how did I find myself defending some woman I didn't even know? Still, I felt it was a valid point. A person cannot be faulted or resented for their fortunate circumstances. "And you don't know, maybe she loves him."

"She'd better," he breathed out a single humorless laugh. "He's about to be flat on his ass."

"Yeah," I glowered, "I'm not real fond of that attitude."

Edward sighed, turning onto his back and running his hand through his hair as he stared at the ceiling. "You might not judge me so harshly if you understood."

"Then enlighten me."

"I can't."

"Not good enough."

"Bella." Edward's eyes met mine, but they were absent of argument. "This is just something you'll have to take my word for. Suffice to say, he's not the sort I'd willingly allow into your life or Alice's."

"But for Alice's friend whom you despise?"

"She's a big girl and can make her own decisions," he frowned disapprovingly. "And if she's smart, she'll listen to my sister."

…

Friday evening I sat on the bench off to the side of the cage while I watched Edward and Garrett spar. Emmett had lured him away from his camp in Colorado to train Edward on a more permanent basis. Well, likely Edward's generous salary was the more enticing factor in the negotiation. We were just under thirty days until the trip to Charlotte for the fight. As far as I could tell, Edward looked to be in great shape. As he and Garrett grappled on the mat, I noticed that his kickboxing coach might have picked up a few pointers in jiu jitsu.

Edward was working off his back, dodging, and sometimes absorbing, punches as he tried to maneuver from the bottom to secure a triangle or arm bar. Impressively, Garrett managed to pass Edward's full guard and gain side control before Edward quickly reversed and rolled over Garrett's leg to regain half guard. I smiled, proud of my man who submitted to no one.

"You're drooling," Alice's tinkling voice teased. I looked to her approaching and did nothing to hide my excitement at watching Edward impose his will on his opponent.

Yeah, definitely had a fetish. Heat pulsed through my veins and settled between my legs as my eyes followed every flexed muscle, slick with sweat, coil like a boa as Edward took Garrett's neck and completed a gator death roll to secure the choke.

"I kinda have a little crush on your brother," I shrugged. Alice rolled her eyes, sitting down next to me. She'd taken to occasionally showing up after work to watch the tail end of Edward's training sessions while waiting for us to finish up.

"I've never seen him fight," she told me as she only watched Edward out of the corner of her eye. "Not in an actual match."

Cautiously, I searched her face for a clue as to whether or not this was a conversation I should enter. Alice didn't appear especially sorrowful. "Does it…bring up bad memories?" Triggers were funny, fickle things. Being unwilling to watch her brother beat the shit out of someone would be completely understandable. I might have felt the same way if not for being so desensitized to the sport through Emmett and Jasper.

"No," she answered nonchalantly, "I don't mind that he chose this. Really, it helps him and I'm happy for that. I just, you know, worry about him. I don't want him to get hurt."

"Nah," I flicked my wrist at the cage dismissively. "Maybe you haven't heard, but that boy is sort of a badass. He's practically invincible."

Alice smiled fondly, finally putting both of her eyes on the cage. Both men were at it again and striking, exchanging blows. Alice winced when Garrett tagged Edward, but I assured her it wasn't a damaging blow. Having seen them really go at it before his last fight, I could see that Garrett was holding back and not really putting that much power behind his fists. It was early still.

"So…I need your help," she announced. I knew that voice. It was her "you're not going to like this but I'm going to wear you down until you agree" voice. Alice was just as stubborn and relentless as her brother and far more manipulative. That girl didn't play fair and tugged on every heartstring she could get her dainty little hands on.

"Lay it on me," I groaned, resigned to my fate. I made the mistake of looking her in the big doe eyes. Damn it. This was big. I wasn't going to like it one bit.

"Carlisle and Esme want Edward to come visit in June."

"Okay." That didn't seem so unreasonable. Then again… "How long has it been since he's seen them?"

"Oh, not that long. We used to get together in New York or their home in Washington a couple times a year."

So that's what she was getting at. "How long since Edward's been back to Boston?"

Alice's confidence fell fractionally as her lips twisted. "His final exams at law school. He didn't even attend commencement."

"Alice," I sighed, hating to refuse her. "I don't think I can touch this one. I can only begin to guess at how much that place upsets him. I won't ask him to go back there. Why don't you ask them to come here? Or meet somewhere else?"

"Rose's wedding." She said this while cringing away and bracing herself like a kid who told her parents she'd maxed out the credit card.

"Not happening," I shook my head. "He doesn't want to go anywhere near that. Why would Rose even invite him? They hate each other, right?"

"Her family is close with Carlisle and Esme. The polite thing to do was to invite all of us. Anyway, Edward won't let me go if he isn't there. I know what he'll say. So you need to make him want to go."

"I think you're overreacting." I leaned back against the wall. In the cage, Edward and Garrett were in a powwow with Jasper. "Edward wouldn't stop you from going to a wedding, especially if your aunt and uncle will be there." I turned to her, smiling knowingly. "You're taking Jasper, right? First time meeting the parental figures?"

Alice nodded, biting back the huge grin tugging at both sides of her pink lips. "They'll love him, of course. But I think he's a little nervous."

"Jasper does great with families. Hell, my dad never once shot at him."

Alice giggled, quickly glancing at her man with a look a pure adoration. I never would have picked her off a menu for him, but they were perfect together. "I think it will be good for you two."

"What?" I puzzled over her suddenly serious expression.

"I just have a feeling like this is something you both need to do together. Edward has to face the city at some point and you should be there for him when he does." Alice paused. She looked into my eyes intently, and for the first time I realized that she had every bit the skill Edward possessed for willing his influence on another person with just that look. What the hell kind of boarding school did these kids go to? "He loves Carlisle and Esme, their opinion matters to him. They really want to meet you."

"So that's what this is really about? You're trying to coerce me into dragging Edward along to face my own inquisition?"

"That's only twenty percent of the reason." She flashed a Cheshire grin. "Thirty percent tops."

"See that?" Edward approached us, a towel over his shoulders and sweat dripping down his carved chest, while sliding a glance at Jasper beside him. "They're conspiring against us. We should separate them now or suffer the consequences of their seditious plotting."

He had no idea how right he was. No, this was Edward. Of course he knew. Never mind that, my eyes were stuck to his chiseled abdomen and the yummy muscles rising and falling with his heavy breaths. When I finally managed to drag my eyes up to his, Edward smirked confidently.

I don't know what worried me more, convincing Edward to go to Boston or facing Dr. and Mrs. Cullen for the interrogation. If only I'd managed to pick up a few social graces in my travels.


	7. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

* * *

**Chapter 7**

After the guys were showered and dressed, the six of us deposited the cars at the house and set out on foot to Duval Street. Spring was in full bloom, finally shrugging off what qualified as a winter chill in Key West. Frankly, anything below 75 was cause for panic. Board shorts and tank tops were quickly replaced with enough cold weather clothing to suggest we were facing a blizzard of apocalyptic proportions. People in the Florida, and especially the lower latitudes, tend to overreact to the cold. I counted myself among them.

The balmy night air, aided by a steady breeze from the Gulf, spun my hair in wisps around my shoulders while Edward and I squeezed onto the sidewalk behind Alice and Jasper. He didn't have breasts or pouty lips, but at least Emmett had Garrett to talk to when the couples of our group inevitably tuned him out through the course of the night.

Seriously, I needed to start combing the island for some prospects on my very eligible brother's behalf.

Duval was teeming with revelers and bar crawlers. Strolling the crowded street toward our first stop for dinner, the atmosphere was loud and lively. It was spring break season, so while the snowbirds headed north, the college kids traded places.

Kitschy shops selling tacky shirts and trinkets held their doors open and poured florescent and neon light into the night. Tiny art galleries set out trays of iced tea and snacks to entice foot traffic inside. Bars competed sonically with rival playlists. And yes, on occasion, the scent of pot wafted off of passersby and from operators of hemp jewelry kiosks.

Garrett had never heard of Jimmy Buffett, practically the official musical mascot of the Conch Republic, before settling on our little island and noticing his name and merchandise every damn place he looked. So, in honor of his ignorance, we decided on dinner at Margaritaville tonight.

In all honesty, the food wasn't spectacular or unlike that which you could find at any island-themed chain. However, that was hardly the point. Like going to a Starbucks in Seattle or In-and-Out Burger in L.A., it was just something newcomers had to do at least once while in Key West.

As we perused our menus, an involuntary snicker escaped me. Jimmy's "Fruitcakes" played over the sound system, bringing about a fond, and somewhat mortifying, memory of the day Jasper hit puberty.

Edward quickly noticed and eyed me curiously. "Care to share, love?"

I smiled, tilting my head toward Jasper across the table. I nudged Emmett's ribs next to me, altering him to put down his water lest he snort ice up his nose. Affecting a nostalgic sadness, I swiped an imaginary tear from the corner of my eye and sniffed.

"Jasper saw his first pair of lady parts to this song."

"Bella!" Jasper's eyebrows shut up in surprise.

"Ha! That's right," Emmett chuckled. "I totally heard his balls drop."

Jasper uncomfortably scanned the room for our waiter. "Fuck off, shithead."

"Oh," I waved my hand at his bitterness, "don't pretend that wasn't the best night of your young life."

"Bella, did you make our boy a man?" Garrett leaned in next to Emmett, leering at me like a man who was proud I'd seen him naked.

"Absolutely not."

"No."

Edward and Jasper answered simultaneously. Alice suppressed her laughter while running her fingers through her man's hair in a placating gesture. Edward slid that arm of ownership over my shoulder and I leaned back into his hold.

"Why do we do this to each other?" Jasper's soft blue eyes pleaded with me to put an end to his humiliation. No such luck.

"It's our way," I shrugged. "You made me in your own image, Jazz. Suck it up."

"I should have left you in the sandbox."

"You couldn't live without me," I replied primly.

"Story," Emmett interjected impatiently by thudding his fist on the table. "So, Jazz's folks let us come along to a Jimmy Buffett concert in eighth grade—"

"Which, by the way, was a terrible idea," I added. "Like taking a Mormon to Mos Eisley. Pope in a strip club doesn't even begin to describe the awkward."

"Why?" Alice asked innocently.

For starters, Jimmy concerts are preceded by several hours of tailgating in the parking lot. That part is spectacular, actually, if you're old enough to drink and your eyes have been suitably desensitized to nudity. I explained to the uninitiated at the table how mostly middle-aged partygoers arrive with RVs, boats on trailers, and even set up tents.

"There was a guy with a full Jacuzzi surrounded by sand and palm trees," Emmett cut it.

Along with the grills and people passing around burgers and gumbo that evening, there was every sort of drunken misfit handing out red cups of blended drinks to anyone that walked by. People smoked pot with impunity and chicks ran around in bikinis that would be scandalous in Brazil.

"Your dad agreed to this?" Edward's inquisitive gaze read between the lines.

"He might have been on an overnight fishing trip that weekend," I answered coyly.

"I thought your dad would be the stern military type," Alice commented to Jasper. Nothing could be further from the truth.

"Sailor," Jasper offered in answer. "Squids are a different breed." Meaning that the Navy had rightfully earned its reputation around the world, which translated into somewhat lax parenting.

"So…?" Garrett searched the table for the point of the story.

"It's a stupid story," Jasper grumbled, again searching for our overworked waiter who was across the room tending to a table of frat boys.

"We were in the stands watching the concert and this lady in front of us was bouncing around and screaming the lyrics to the song at the top of her lungs, sloshing her beer around, and just making a mess of herself," I told him. "She popped right out of her tube top and was so trashed she didn't even notice. Her double-Ds were flopping everywhere when she turned around and fell over the back of her seat and right into little Jasper's lap.

"No shit!" Garrett laughed as Jasper sunk further into his seat. "Dude, that's Penthouse material right there."

"Tell him the best part, Jazz." He eyed me with contempt, his jaw locked tight. "No? Okay." I turned to Garrett's expectant face. "She had to be at least fifty and a good candidate for skin cancer. Those things were halfway to her waist. Then…"

"She upchucked on me," he growled. "There. Happy? I was fucking traumatized."

"Aww." Alice pulled his head to her shoulder, consoling him while the rest of us fell apart laughing.

"I really don't know why I put up with you." Despite his words, Jasper smiled fondly for me.

Before we had ourselves fully under control, our waiter finally arrived with our drinks and took our meal orders. Between trading embarrassing stories and the resulting mini food fights that sprung up around our table, dinner took longer that strictly necessary. Of course, that gave Alice and I ample time to drink our way through the cocktail menu, indulging in frozen fruity concoctions of every flavor and color.

"Do you think they'll make my drink in this," she held up the huge souvenir glass she just had to buy to commemorate our night, "if I bring it with me to the bar?"

"Doubtful," Jasper chuckled. "I don't know why you bought that thing. It isn't going to fit in your purse."

"You're carrying it, silly." She shoved it in his hand and kissed him on the cheek with a wink. Totally whipped. Like a good boyfriend, Jasper just took it and didn't argue. Her smile was bright and full of life; no way he'd dampen her mood.

"Thank you," I whispered in Edward's ear as I wrapped my arm around his waist and we filed back out onto the street. I kissed him under the corner of his jaw and slid my fingers beneath the hem of his T-shirt to find the sexy indentation of his hipbone.

"You're welcome." His eyes shined affectionately while he cradled me closer with is arm over my shoulder. "Was that for anything in particular?"

"Not putting up a fuss about splitting the checks and letting Jasper pay for Alice. I've noticed you don't try to pay for everything anymore. I know he appreciates that."

"As long as I'm still allowed to take care of you, I'm happy."

"I can live with that," I smiled. My easy acquiescence earned me a kiss to the top of my head. Maybe Edward had finally trained me that it was easier to just let him spend money and have his way rather than argue.

When we arrived at Hog's Breath, the place was slammed; a mixture of local barflies and tourists crammed into every available inch on the open-air deck and surrounding the wraparound bar. Spotting a table of young guys and two empty chairs, I tugged on Alice's arm to enlist her as my accomplice.

"We got this," I informed the men. Alice puzzled for a moment but came willingly as I escorted her to the table of unwitting victims.

"Hey," I smiled innocently at a jock-looking guy in a Northwestern T-shirt. He slid on a smarmy grin and looked us up and down. "These seats free?"

"They are now," he answered happily. His lucky night it was not.

Jock's friends slid their chairs over to let us pull out the empty seats and I had to practically shove Alice down to make her play along. Curious, she glanced over her shoulder to where we'd left the guys, but I put my arm around her to pull her attention back to the table.

"Thanks," I answered with exaggerated gratefulness. "We got lost trying to find this place," I told him. "We've been wandering around for two hours. Not good with directions," I shrugged with my best ditzy affectation.

"You girls thirsty?" Jock's buddy to my right leaned in. I tamped down the urge to back away and smiled flirtatiously.

"Shots," I nodded. "Lots of them." Those were the magic words the eager potential date rapists were hoping to hear. "We'll hold down the table." It wasn't my proudest moment, but I batted my eyelashes at Jock and the guys all quickly escaped to the bar.

"Bella?" Alice glared at me like I'd committed treason, but a second later Emmett arrived with the rest of our posse in tow.

"They should start putting your picture up as a warning," Emmett laughed. The guys took their seats around the table, Edward sitting next to me with an expression totally lacking in amusement.

"I perfected the tactic in my travels. A girl has to be clever to survive in the big scary world alone."

Garrett looked impressed as he slid into his seat. "That's a patented ploy then?"

"Survival of the fittest," I answered. "Those boys just learned a valuable lesson about abandoning precious territory."

"And when they come back?" Alice swiveled to look at the bar, but Jasper put his arm around her and captured her attention. Best not too look like we were expecting Jock to return.

"Look at these guys," I slid my gaze around the table of trained fighters who, as a solid wall of masculinity, looked like a quick path to a terrible night. "Who's going to start shit with them over a couple of chicks they just met?"

"Let them try." Emmett bowed up, putting on his best intimidating scowl. I winked at his show of machismo. "My town, my table. It is the right of being a local."

And it would seem I was correct. The Northwestern jocks didn't bother coming back to the table and we enjoyed our drinks in peace, or the raucous noise of the bar that qualified as peace.

When I reached for my second beer as Emmett set it in front of me, Edward slid it away, replacing it with his glass of water. "You should slow down," he spoke against my ear.

Undeterred, I took my beer back and tipped it to my lips. "I'm having a good time."

"You've had plenty for one night."

I searched his face, uncertain where the Mr. Mom act was coming from. He looked neutral enough, not especially upset in any way that I could see. "I'm fine."

Three empty beers later, the house band playing on the tiny platform that served as a stage surrendered the microphone while the oblivious crowd paid little attention. Defensive because I knew that feeling, I clapped and cheered entirely too loudly. The singer looked up, smiled, and nodded his head in thanks.

"I'm going to buy them a drink," I announced to the table and slid away quickly while Edward was in the restroom. Mr. Cullen would not approve, but I thought a gesture of appreciation was warranted.

Playing shit bars to small, ungrateful crowds taught me a lot about how soul sucking the experience could be. Little acts of kindness from the audience could turn an awful gig into a great memory very easily. Call it paying it forward.

"Hey," I tapped the singer on the shoulder as he and the other members of the band gathered around the railing on the edge of the bar deck. "I liked your set."

The singer was tall, lanky, with a short beard and cutoff flannel shirt. His look was a mix of lumberjack and hipster, but it suited him. Key West embraced all types. When light brown eyes lowered to mine he offered me a friendly smile and stuck out his hand for me to shake, introducing himself as Brandon and pointing out his band mates.

"Let me buy you guys a round," I said as I flagged down one of the waitresses.

"We get our drinks for free," Brandon said.

"Yeah, I know. But I'm being nice, so just take it."

The waitress took their orders and quickly left to fill them, leaving me with the men packing up their instruments. "I haven't seen you guys play before, are you traveling?"

"Yeah," the guitarist answered. As he closed up his case he pulled out a flyer and handed it to me. "We've got a couple more nights here and then we head back home to Augusta."

"Right on. You've got chops," I told him honestly. "I dug your 'Watchtower' rendition."

"You play?" He stood up, leaning against the railing.

"I did a little time gigging in Europe last year. Places like this but with accents."

"Hey, Brandon, I'm glad I caught you." Bobby, a 60-something balding man with a belly three feet in front of him, waddled up to us with sweat dripping down his temples. "The next act hasn't shown. I need you to do me a solid. I'll pay you guys double if you'll do another set."

"Hey, Bobby." He turned and swept his eyes over me several times before he believed what he saw. "Long time."

"I'll be damned," he shook his head and then a wide smile spread out over bearded face. "Good to see you, kid." Bobby pulled me into a sweaty hug. The scent of fried food and smoke was thick on his person.

"This girl," Bobby released me from the hug and shook my shoulder as he addressed the band like they were interested in his stories, "took me for sixty bucks before she was fourteen. She's got a mean poker face."

"Hey, the chief's daughter didn't gamble as a minor." He laughed at my false innocence. Bobby was an old buddy of Charlie's, but I hadn't seen much of him since the funeral.

"What do ya say?" He implored Brandon, who looked at the rest of the band for confirmation.

"Double?"

Bobby nodded and put out his hand to shake on the deal. Brandon agreed and the guys went about unpacking their gear.

"Does the chief's daughter have chops or was she pulling my leg?" The guitarist smirked as he looked between Bobby and me.

"You gonna play for me, Belly?" Bobby chuckled, the sounded gruff with the evidence of lungs that had inhaled decades of smoke.

I grumbled, shoving out of his hold. "If you don't call me Belly," I snarled but still managed a nostalgic smile.

"Here," the guitarist handed me an acoustic guitar, "play a couple with us. We're winging it now anyway."

"Are you sure about this? I don't want to cramp your style." I met Brandon's eyes. The waitress appeared, handing off the bottles of beer, and I handed her a few bills.

"What the hell," he smiled. "Maybe the crowd will warm up for you."

"That's my girl," Bobby praised. He gave me another hug, but as he waddled toward the kitchen, I followed after him for one last favor.

"I'm here with the guys." I nodded off in the direction of our table, but it was obscured on the other side of the bar. No matter, he knew whom I meant. "Can I get a round for old times sake?"

"I got you covered," he nodded happily.

Returning to the band, I snagged a bottle off the railing and put it to my lips.

"Oh, here." The guitarist took my Bud Light and traded it for Blue Moon. I hadn't noticed I'd taken the wrong one. "Fruit doesn't belong in beer," he smirked.

"Sure as hell does," I countered seriously. "Don't you know? We put citrus in everything in Florida. I don't know how you can drink that watered-down swill."

I bantered with my new acquaintances, feeling a little more like the carefree girl I had pretended to be while traveling. Bella Swan across the pond was not a pariah with a cargo hold full of baggage. As far as anyone along the way knew, I was cool, confident, and a hell of a good time in a bar. I took suits for their billfolds at poker, bikers at darts, and failed miserably at pool. With my reassurance always snug in my back pocket and my eye on the front door, I played the part I'd constructed quite well.

"Where's the scene for Saturday night?" Brandon asked as he pulled his lips from the tip of his beer.

"Captain Tony's Saloon is my usual haunt," I told him. "It's a cool place if you want to get off Duval, my roommate bartends there." I leaned back against the corner of the railing, suddenly feeling a little heavier and less sure on my feet. I tried to take a sip of my beer, but realized it was empty.

"Maybe we can meet up before our show. Let me get your number." He pulled his phone from his pocket, looking at me to rattle off the digits.

Trying to order the numbers correctly in my head suddenly became a monumental task. I blinked, trying to focus on his face, but my eyes weren't cooperating. I mumbled some numbers, not entirely certain they were the right ones.

"You okay?" The guitarist looked at me with a concerned expression, but it was blurry and sort of lopsided. Or was I lopsided?

"A little headache," I replied automatically. "I'm good."

"If you need to back out," Brandon offered but was cut off.

"I've got some Gatorade and Advil in the van. Come on, I'll get ya fixed up real quick before we go back on." He took the empty bottle from my fingers, which were all tingly and heavy feeling, and then latching his fingers around mine. I was moving, but not really registering my feet taking steps. Colors and fuzzy outlines of shapes filled my vision. My stomach didn't feel so great and the pounding at my temples increased. Dehydration was the next most prevailing sensation. My throat was dry, scratchy, and I had a sour taste in my mouth.

Where was I going?

I heard the thump of my feet on the wooden patio change to the crunching of loose gravel. The colors faded to mostly darkness as I tried to look around me. My eyes were slow, reluctant, and refused to bring images into focus.

"Bella!" My attention went to the sound of my name from Jasper behind me, though my head just sort of flopped to the side, unable to make the full revolution.

"Let go of her," Edward snarled. I saw the outline of his shape come closer. I weakly lifted my hand for him, putting on what I thought was a smile, but he bypassed me. Instead, there was a loud _thunk_ as something was ripped out of my other hand.


	8. Chapter 8

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

**Chapter 8**

I had the odd sensation that I was dreaming. My limbs felt distant and uncoordinated, my breathing was slow and uneven, and a general feeling of confusion tainted my awareness. The pounding at my temples increased, spreading out to my forehead. I put forth effort to focus my vision, squinting and blinking, while images faded in and out from somewhat sharp to fuzzy distortions. In general, I was lethargic.

I'd been fall-down drunk before; this wasn't it. Absent was the erratic, energetic behavior usually associated with my drunkenness. I was more than acquainted with prescription painkillers and sleep medication: all the symptoms were there, with a Blue Moon chaser.

"Get off me!" The guitarist was slammed against the side of a dark minivan with Edward's hand latched around his throat.

"Who are you? What do want with her?" I couldn't see his face, but from the back, Edward's shoulders were raised and tense. His posture was coiled, strong.

"Back the fuck off."

That was the wrong answer. Edward's fist flew forward, connecting with the guitarist's nose and sending his head snapping to the side against the unforgiving metal of the vehicle. The guy wailed in pain as blood poured down his chin and he struggled to break free.

Edward growled, his voice too low and too calm. "Answer me."

I listed to one side in Jasper's grasp, my legs unsteady. "Edward." Jasper's worried voice yelled next to my ear. "Bella, hey. Bella." He spun me around, clutching both sides of my face. "She doesn't look so good."

"What did you give her?" I heard Edward's angry growl and then another thwack followed by a pained wail. "What did you do to her?"

"Edward!" Jasper yelled again and I snapped my eyes open reflexively to the sound that was unusually loud and piercing. My ears began to ring and my languid breathing sounded like the tide whooshing against my eardrums.

Edward. A very brief, fleeting clarity struck me. I should be stopping him, I thought. He needed me. I struggled to free myself from Jasper to no avail. "Let me go," I muttered, my voice not nearly as strong as I intended.

"Did he hurt her?" Edward yelled, apparently addressing Jasper. "Did he touch her?"

"Bella?" Jasper's face was calm, controlled, but his blue eyes revealed the panic my brother and best friend held. No, I was okay. I was in the bar and then I was here. That was all. I just felt…tired. Very, very tired. "No," Jasper answered. Had I given him a response?

"For that," Edward spoke with frightening malice, "I won't kill you." Edward threw the guitarist to the ground, and without waiting for another answer, he pummeled the struggling man repeatedly. Every time Edward's fist reared back, more blood dripped from his knuckles. Jasper was yelling at my ear, telling him to stop, but Edward was relentless in his attack.

Again, I slumped in Jasper's arms, no longer in communication with my legs. The darkness of night, which shrouded the small parking lot behind the bar, deepened as it descended on me impatiently. Edward's firm, unyielding form turned to a blurry figure as the muted colors, still visible, merged.

"Edward." His name was only a desperate whisper from my lips. "Stop."

"We need to get her to the ER." Jasper's voice, though I felt him still holding me, sounded faint and distant.

"No." I protested weekly, trying to meet his eyes and focus. "Please," I slurred my words and felt tears fall down my cheeks, "no hospital. No more. Please. Edward."

…

Someone was pinning me down, and though I struggled against him, he wouldn't release me. I flailed, kicking wildly and smacking at the air, trying to find anything to shove against. A splitting headache spread out from my temples and concentrated behind my eyes. It was dark, blackness surrounding me, and a piercing cry escaped my chest.

"Bella, stop. Wake up."

I kept fighting, gasping for air. I just had to last a little longer. Someone would come for me if I just held out long enough. Another scream ripped through me, desperate and full of terror.

"Bella, it's me, love. Open your eyes."

I tried to reach under my backside, my knife was supposed to be there. Why wasn't it there? A crushing, debilitating realization slammed into me, pulling a desperate strangled cry of anguish from my lips.

He was dead. James killed him. He didn't make it.

I swung blindly, connecting with his face.

"Fuck," a hissed voice reacted.

Sharp, excruciating pain shot through my hand. I screamed again and my eyes shot open, but it was still total blackness.

"Bella! Stop it." Both of my forearms were pinned down on either side of my head. I blinked rapidly, willing my vision to focus on the dark figure over me. He was straddling my upper thighs and hovering inches from my face. "It's me, angel. Stop struggling."

"Edward?"

"Yes, angel, it's me." I latched onto his smooth, soft voice. "Please, stop fighting me. You're hurting yourself."

"Edward!" I shrieked and fought against his hands so that I could touch him and know he was real. "Let me go!"

Immediately, his weight was removed from my body. All of it. I shot upright, grasping at air in search of him, and nearly fell back with the wave of dizziness that overcame me. When the room was suddenly filled with blinding light, I cringed and closed my eyes.

"You're safe," I heard him say from further away. "I'm sorry. You were having a nightmare. I was just trying to wake you."

I took several deep breaths and pressed my hands to my temples; that reminded me of the throbbing pain in my right hand and I clutched it against my chest. My ears were ringing. My eyes ached behind their lids.

"What happened," I asked weakly. "Where am I?" I paused, trying to recall how I'd gotten here. Everything was blank.

"Home," he answered in a forlorn voice, and then he seemed to amend his previous statement. "My place."

I blinked, barely cracking open my eyes to ease the light in, in small doses until my vision adjusted.

"I'll take you home. Or you can stay," he added in strange, rushed voice of uncertainty. Was he nervous? "I'll call Jasper, if you want him to get you. Anything. Or I can just go, you're welcome to stay, but I can leave if—"

"Edward?" I finally raised my eyes to find him pressed against the bedroom door as if he couldn't put enough space between us. Oh no, what did I do?

I couldn't remember anything other than…did we go out? Was I drinking? Embarrassment and panic gripped me as I searched his flat expression.

"I'm sorry. You said you wanted to come here. I offered to take you to your house, but you insisted." He was fully dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, and as I looked down and scanned myself, I saw that I was, too. I looked to the windows, but the blackout curtains were drawn shut.

"What time is it?"

Edward opened his mouth and shut it several times. Though he looked reluctant to meet my eyes, his face contorted in concentration as his gaze settled on mine.

"After three, I think," he finally responded.

"In the morning?" Where the hell was I tonight and why couldn't I remember?

"Afternoon," he replied with a sigh. "Bella, do you recall anything about last night?" He took a step forward and then jerked to a halt.

"Are you mad at me?" I clutched at comforter over my legs, wringing the fabric between my fingers, and again reminded that my hand was killing me. There were just too many competing sensations, but confusion was winning over anything else.

"Furious." Despite his answer, his features were pensive. "I should call Jasper."

"Why are standing over there?" The distance between us was squeezing the air right out of my lungs and exacerbating the feeling of dread in my stomach. His separation from me was completely unnatural.

"I understand if I scared you, Bella. I promise I won't hurt you, ang-" He stopped, literally wincing to swallow the word. "You told me to let go of you."

"Edward, no." I moved to get up, but the dizziness shoved me back down to the pillows involuntarily.

"Don't, love." Edward lurched forward and then stalled himself again. "Just rest."

"Please come here," I begged him. "You're scaring me."

At my command, Edward deliberated before slowly climbing onto the bed. "I'd never hurt you, angel. I promise. I swear on my fucking life, I'd never harm you."

"Why do you keep saying that?" I raised my head to meet his eyes. They were bloodshot, his lids swollen, and dark circles under each. Except one had an angry red mark. "You're hurt," I reached out and ran my fingers under his eye.

"You caught me with a right cross, love. Hurt like a bitch." His lips twitched fractionally, but the humor left just as quickly as it tried to flicker to life.

"It did not," I teased him. "My hand is killing me. Do you have a steel plate under there?"

Edward gently took my hand in his, turning it over slowly to inspect me. My knuckles were swelling and already turning purple. I winced as he pressed against each bone in turn, feeling his way across my hand. I'd had much worse, so I sucked it up and let him look me over.

"Can you make a fist?" He let me, watching as I weakly pulled my fingers to my palm and released again. "Good. Anything feel broken?"

"No. I think I'll live." I smiled when our eyes met, but my lips fell to a frown as I took in Edward's expression. A deep crease was etched between his brows, his lips a tight line.

"Edward, what happened? I…" I paused, again trying to come up with any recollection of last night. The first scene I could picture was Edward and Garrett sparing at the gym. "I can't remember last night at all." Panic rose in my voice as I scanned his face, finding only more reasons to worry. "I don't remember how I got here. And why have I been sleeping, in my clothes, all day?"

"Shh, love." Edward pulled me down and settled us against the pillows with his hand cupping the side of my face. For me, he tried to put on a reassuring mask, but it simply wouldn't slide into place effectively. He was scared, which terrified me.

His thumb lightly glided over the apple of my cheek as he stared intently into my eyes as if he hadn't seen me in months. "Do you want to clean up? I thought about—" He cut himself off, blinking and ripping his eyes from mine before continuing. "I didn't know if I should change your clothes."

"Change my clothes? Edward." I titled my face to capture his wandering gaze. He was avoiding me, or whatever happened last night, which only served to increase my anxiety. So, I was passed out when I got here. "Tell me."

Edward remained silent for several seconds as we simply stared at one another. I ran my hand down his clothed chest, resting my it over his heart and quietly urging him to confess. With a deep sigh, Edward pulled my face against his chest and wrapped his arms around me to mold me against him. And then he detailed the night that was a total void in my memory.

"I came back from the restroom and they said you went to talk to the band," he told me softly. I stiffened, knowing he was hiding his honest unhappiness about that fact. I couldn't even work out why I would have left the table alone for so long. It wasn't like me to just take off on my friends. "I got up to look for you, but Alice gave me a lecture about being overbearing. She seemed to have the idea I owed you some space after the bodyguard situation. Bobby came up and introduced himself, saying that he'd just talked to you and that you were going to play."

It all sounded innocent enough, but the looming bit of information that led to a total lack of memory had my heart beating frantically. Edward sensed my anxiety building, running his fingers through my hair and down my spine in a deliberate and repetitive pattern that went a little ways to soothing me. I took several deep breaths, pulling in his scent, and concentrated on the warm feeling of his body under mine.

"What did I do?" I asked hesitantly. Maybe I really didn't want to know.

"It isn't what you did, Bella. It is what he did to you." My head jerked up and my breath caught in my throat. "A member of the band slipped something in your drink and took you out behind the bar."

My breathing sped while I started to take mental inventory of my body. Aside from my hand and my headache, I wasn't in pain. I was fully dressed in what were apparently my clothes from last night.

"No, angel." Edward clasped his tender hands around both sides of my face and penetrated through the wall of fear trying to close in on me. "Nothing happened. Jasper and I found you. He…" Edward winced, seeming to push away the same thought that was creeping in on both of us. "I got to you in time. It didn't get that far."

Relief isn't nearly strong enough a word to describe the air that left my lungs in gratitude. I leaned into Edward's touch, clasping both of my hands over his, which is what finally drew my attention to the rough feeling of his knuckles. I pulled his hand away from my face, inspecting it and the raw torn bits of skin around the angry red scabs.

"It took everything I had not to kill him, Bella." Edward's voice was familiar. The low coldness there wasn't anger, it was the darkness he took on whenever the memory of his father was injected into a conversation. "If he'd have touched you," he told me while staring me directly in the eyes, "I would have taken my time. I would have made him suffer before I ended his life."

Edward's reflexive rage was never the most frightening part of him. The real danger was in the calculated violence. Like that perfect, premeditated malevolence he'd carried out when he left his father just conscious enough to pull the trigger.

For several quiet minutes, Edward held me against his chest—almost too tightly—while I processed the events of last night as he'd explained them. Truthfully, I was glad not to have the memories. My fingers played over his forehead, through the softness of his hair, and down the taut muscles of his neck in a repetitive pattern. The rhythmic repetition was as much for his calm as mine. I concentrated on the feel of his skin under my fingertips, letting it ground me.

Edward eventually elaborated that I'd refused to let them take me to the hospital. Apparently my brothers just didn't have the heart to put me through that again if it could be avoided. Alice's friend Kate, a nurse who supplemented her income by hosting at Hard Rock, stopped in to check on me a few times, though I hadn't woken once.

"What happened…to him?"

"Jasper and Emmett thought it best their names not be involved, nor yours. Garrett stayed behind to keep an eye on the band after they found him in the parking lot. When the ambulance showed up with the police, he gently suggested that the guy might have had drugs on him. He was arrested. I doubt this was the first time he's tried something like this. With any luck, he has a record."

"Luck?" I peered up at Edward, not believing his feigned ignorance for a second.

"I haven't left this room since I brought you home, but I put in a call."

"It was just a nightmare," I said as the thought popped into mind. "Why did you think I'd be afraid of you?"

"I never wanted you to see me like that," he sighed in defeat. "I'm not proud of what I am, Bella, of what I'm capable of. I wasn't sure if you'd remember. I thought that maybe you wouldn't want to see me."

"I'm not afraid of you." Edward looked away, refusing to accept the simple truth that had always been solid between us. I pushed myself up to hover over his face, locking my earnest gaze with his as I placed my hand under Edward's jaw. "You saved me from something awful, Edward. I'm grateful. I know, without question, you're incapable of hurting me."

"Never, angel." His fingers slid into my hair, gently holding the back of my head. "I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you."

* * *

**End Notes:** Oh, this is far from over... Edward will reserve going postal until he knows Bella is all better. And then...


	9. Chapter 9

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N:** Okay, looks like I just can't tolerate my own angst for too long. So here, totally giving in.

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Edward allowed me some privacy to collect myself and process while I showered and changed clothes. After forcing myself to eat a sandwich and drink two full glasses of water, I worked up the nerve to call Jasper. His first words were of concern, naturally. He and Emmett had spent several hours on Edward's couch while they waited for me to sleep it off overnight, but Alice finally insisted they go home and rest after Kate assured them I would be fine.

When Emmett casually asked if I was feeling well enough to come home, I read between the lines. Jasper was waiting to deliver his lecture and it was Emmett's job to sound civil and friendly enough to get me there. Avoiding them would be futile, so I agreed without argument. Looking back, I should have played the invalid a little longer.

"I'm sorry," I told Edward as he slid into the driver's seat of his Volvo. The sentiment wasn't nearly enough to make up for what he must have gone through last night, but it was all I could think to say.

Putting him in a position to start a fight was bad enough, but laying so much stress on him in the days leading to a match was just careless. It was my job to be supportive, not instigating drama on his days off.

Edward started the car, backed out of his space, and exited the parking garage without uttering a word or looking in my direction. I kept my eyes trained on the side of his angular face. Every second that ticked by in silence made the guilty feeling swell in my gut.

"You never have to apologize for needing my help, but I think you need to consider the behavior that's put us here."

"No, I know. I was stupid and careless. Really, I know better than that. I always keep my hand over my drink and never accept anything from someone I don't know. I guess I was just—"

"Drunk," Edward responded curtly. I snapped my mouth shut, reflexively hostile to the tone he'd chosen to use, but tamped down my bitterness and just accepted that I'd put him through hell. He was within his rights to be upset about that.

"Yes," I answered through clenched teeth. "I got carried away."

"Call it whatever you like. That isn't going to happen again."

"It won't, I promise. I can handle myself better than that. Next time I'll behave and stay put." I offered Edward a cheesy grin, thinking that my choice of words would placate him. Instead, his scowl deepened. "What? I get it. Bad Bella. Let's not make a huge deal out of this."

"The fact that you're so willing to overlook this incident only proves to me you don't understand the gravity of what might have happened to you."

"Hey," I turned in my seat, my temper starting to flare at his condescension. "You don't have to tell me what the endgame would have been. I know you haven't forgotten, but I've been in worse spots before."

"You'd rather be dead than have to live after that," he answered darkly. I was stunned for a moment, fully rendered speechless at his callousness.

"I…I can't believe you'd say something like that to me."

"I nearly took a bullet for you, Bella. Have you no regard for protecting yourself? If you have no sense of self-preservation on your own behalf, maybe you could muster up just a little for my sake."

"I don't have a death wish," I snapped at him. "You should know better. I've gotten this far on nothing but survival instincts."

"And for all you've survived, you've learned nothing toward changing the habits that put you in danger in the first place."

"Fuck you," I bit at him. "Don't feel obligated to swoop in and play hero on my behalf. I don't want to inconvenience you."

"Damn it, Bella." Edward jerked the wheel abruptly into the turn. "Why do you have to be an insolent child when all I'm asking is that you make an effort to take better care of yourself?"

"I guess I'm just too immature," I replied caustically. "Please, don't lower yourself for my benefit."

The car screeched to an abrupt halt, tossing me forward against my seatbelt. I glanced out the window and saw we were in front of the house. With that, I hurried out of the car and slammed the door behind me.

Without regard for Edward, I quickly unlocked the front door, making sure to slam that one in my wake as well. Jasper and Emmett were in the living room with Alice and shot up from the couch at the racket that followed my arrival.

"Bella, what the hell?" Jasper looked between me and door as I stormed through the living room and straight to my bedroom. Just for good measure, I threw that one against the doorframe as loudly as possible.

Of course, it didn't deter my brothers for a moment. Before I could decide between pacing in my fury and hiding in the bathroom, the door opened and the three men filed in with a little pixie following them. My bedroom was suddenly a very crowded place, which only further served to put me on the defensive.

"I want him gone," I pointed at Edward. He glared right back; his determined and intense eyes daring me to force him out.

"Not happening," he answered smugly. Bastard.

"Edward," Alice stood in front of him between the wall and the bed, speaking calmly.

"What's going on?" Jasper came to my side, ignoring Edward to search for an explanation.

"Apparently I've been playing too roughly with Edward's toys," I answered Jasper while snarling at Edward. "Maybe you should take out an insurance policy on me. You know, just to cover your investment."

"I'm not that fragile, Bella. Insult me all you like."

"Why don't we take it down a notch," Emmett suggested with confusion on his face.

"Emm, I want him to leave."

"Lay a hand on me and you'll be sorry," Edward threatened my brother with a good twenty-five pounds on him.

Emmett popped an eyebrow to the challenge and took a step closer until they were inches apart. "Bro, this is my house. If she wants you out, you'll be gone one way or another."

"Emmett's way is your best option, Eddie." I sneered at him; purposefully poking at his irritation in the hopes he'd just get fed up with me and leave. "My way is messy and very unpleasant."

"Bella!" Alice screeched at me, her eyes wide in shock.

"Okay, that's enough." Jasper pushed me down on the bed. Putting himself between Edward and me with his hands on both my shoulders to hold me in place.

"I've seen what you're capable of, love." Edward's tone was full of mockery. "Your threats didn't put me off the first time."

"Emmett," I called his name in a warning tone. A few more seconds and I wouldn't be held responsible for my actions.

"Edward, you need to go," Jasper informed him calmly but without taking his eyes from mine. "Now. I'm not asking you again."

"Come on," Alice urged him. "Please, Edward. You're not helping."

With Emmett and Alice coaxing him out of the room, he left and the door closed behind them. When we were alone, Jasper sighed heavily and sat down on the bed in front of me. I pushed myself up against the headboard and curled my knees to my chest while taking several deep breaths.

"Recent events excluded, how do you feel?"

"I'm fine, physically."

Jasper pulled my right hand away from my legs, inspecting the swollen bruise. "When did this happen?"

"Today. I gave Edward that shiner he's sporting."

"Did he hurt you?" Jasper was half way off the bed before I grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.

"No," I answered reassuringly. "He tried to wake me from a nightmare and I freaked. It wasn't his fault."

Appeased, Jasper sat back down and ran his hands roughly over his face. He looked like I felt and clearly hadn't slept at all while waiting to hear from me. "Care to fill me in?"

"Everything was fine until we got in the car to come here." What the hell had crawled up Edward's ass that turned the kind and considerate boyfriend into the irate jackass? I far preferred the contrite Edward that was comforting me to whatever lunatic was driving his car. "Suddenly he decides to belittle me and accuse me of willfully inviting every lowlife fucker to pick me as an easy target."

"Yeah, I didn't understand any of that." Jasper smiled softly, amused at my unhelpful explanation. Involuntarily, a slight chuckle fell from my lips. I suppose my answer wasn't especially informative.

To the best of my recollection, I gave Jasper the short version of the ride home. All the while, he remained silent and unwavering in his casual expression. As I waited for his response, Jasper's features slowly slid into that blankly disapproving look that I recognized all to well.

"You want me to get you a shot?" He asked me innocently.

"Yeah, maybe." I ran my hand through my hair and then snapped it back to my lap.

"Wrong answer," Jasper chided me.

"What?"

"Sorry, darlin', I'm taking his side on this one."

"Funny," I snorted humorlessly. "Why don't you leave the jokes to Emmett."

"I'm dead serious, Bella. I'll take my share of the blame for letting you wander off like that, but take last night as a wakeup call that you need to reevaluate your recent habits."

"My habits?" I asked incredulously. "And what might those be?"

Jasper sighed and crossed his legs in front of him as he gave me a sympathetic look. "I've been biting my tongue, hoping that you'd work it all out of your system eventually, but what almost happened last night was too much."

He stopped and searched my eyes like I should be finishing his statement for him. Instead, I sat back and narrowed my eyes. "You drink too much, Bella. More than just to have a good time. You're drinking to forget and drinking to pass out so you can sleep without nightmares."

"Where the hell is this coming from?"

"When's the last time you had only one drink?"

"I don't know," I scoffed. "I'm not counting."

"Or the last night in the past two months you haven't had a drink at all?"

"Apparently you have been counting, so why don't you tell me." I crossed my arms over my chest, staring past Jasper to find the reflection of his back in the mirror on the wall. Wow, I looked haggard.

"Not since Jersey," he stated simply and without judgment. Jasper didn't need to speak in condescending tones or leering looks. He knew I understood the underlying disapproval inherently.

"So what? I'm an adult, Jasper. For that matter, I think it's been proven my life is going to be too short to pass up a good time."

"Don't do that," he admonished gently. "There isn't a clocking ticking over your head. Yes, you've been through more than most people, but that doesn't mean your marked or something."

"It was a joke, okay?" Sort of. "I'm just saying that if I want to have a drink, then I am well within my rights. You know I can handle myself. Hell, you and Emm practically conditioned me." I smiled, nudging his shoulder playfully, but Jasper didn't respond. With a frustrated sigh, I gave in to what I thought he wanted to hear.

"Look, I told Edward the same thing. I messed up last night. I don't remember exactly what happened, but I obviously wasn't keeping a close eye on my drink. That was my fault. You know I'm usually very diligent about stuff like that. I've been gone for a long time and I guess I just let myself relax too much because I was home and on familiar territory where I felt safe. It won't happen again, okay?"

"I'm glad to hear it," Jasper nodded. "But you're going to stop drinking as a crutch for dealing with your pain. I let it go on too long because I wanted to believe that you were under control. You're not, Bella, and I'm not going to watch you self-destruct again."

"That's not up to you," I answered petulantly. He was well aware of my disdain for being ordered round. How Jasper thought I'd go quietly was beyond me. "I'll cut back, okay? No more bar-hopping benders."

"You'll cut back to zero."

"Not going to happen."

"Not negotiating with you," he snapped right back.

"Jasper," I groaned impatiently. "With or without your approval, I'm going to do what I want."

"You're cut off at Tony's," he answered smugly. "And Tyler will make sure you can't get served at Flying Monkeys. I'll call every bartender in town and see to it that you can't get a drop to save your life."

While I stared, disbelieving at the absurd lengths Jasper was threatening, I idly recalled Edward's honeycomb hideout. A smirk slid across my lips remembering that there was at least one club where I could still be anonymous. Nevertheless, I wasn't about to concede ground to Jasper's ploy.

"You know what? I'm calling your bluff, Leroy. Go ahead and try it. The Dolphins will sooner the Super Bowl than you'll manage to dry out my bars. Besides, Russ's known me longer. I'm his favorite."

"Russ is on my side, sweetheart." He winked at me, but the gesture was anything by friendly. "Test me."

"This is unbelievable." I launched off the bed and went about the pacing that had seemed a good idea in the first place. "You guys have been conspiring behind my back, haven't you? Why is everyone so damn afraid to talk to me like a normal person?"

"We tried that," he answered tiredly. "You flipped out and told Emmett and I where to stick it, remember? Edward and I have been trying to curtail your intake, but you throw a little fit every time. Today, after we barely found you in time, Edward tried to talk some sense into you. Because excuse him for breathing, but he gives a fuck. And what did you do? You threw it all back in his face."

"Whose side are you on?" I rounded on him, imploring my brother's loyalty. "I'm dealing the best I can, okay? Yes, I know I'm fucked up. I wasn't even over the first trauma before James put his hands around my throat and tried to kill me, Jasper. Do you understand that? The fact that I haven't downed a bottle of pills or slit my wrists is a fucking miracle. I'm stronger than that. I'm doing the best I can to move on with my life. I'm sorry if it isn't happening fast enough for you."

"Not another goddamn word," Edward yelled as he barged into my bedroom while Emmett failed to slow him down. In a blink, Edward had me crushed against his chest as he forcefully pressed his lips to mine. One hand captured me around the small of my back while the other tangled tightly in my hair to ensure I had no escape.

There was a brief outburst of yelling around us. I resisted weakly, but my body simply wasn't in it. As he bit at my bottom lip and slid his tongue over the sting, I opened for him. Edward tilted my head to the side to deepen the kiss, at which point I had no other instinct than to thread my hands through his hair and taste him hungrily.

Our mouths worked in greedy consumption that was anything but gentle. In fact, his blatant intrusion between my lips spoke volumes of his fierce anger, as did every drag of my teeth and harsh tugs against his scalp. Something between a growl and a groan vibrated in Edward's chest. He pushed me back, throwing us against my bathroom door with a thud. I felt him harden against my stomach, encouraging an unbidden moan from me. With practiced ease, Edward slid the hand at my lower back to my ass and hoisted me up to lock my legs around his waist.

Silently venting our ire, the rest of the room fell away from my consciousness. There was nothing but the hard masculinity of Edward's unyielding body solid and burning against mine. His taste quelled me as it stirred my desire, satisfying me as it spurred my insatiable need. Edward's hands were deviously exact in their command of every inch of flesh they touched. Where fabric hindered our connection, the skin bellow screamed for him.

"Edward," I moaned when he released my lips to travel a hot trail of sensual exploration down the side of my neck.

"I'll beg, Bella. Is that what you want?" He dragged his teeth over the beating of my pulse and bit down. "Do you need me on my knees to understand how deeply I care?"

"Baby," I whispered helplessly. My hips writhed against his, grinding on his rigid erection. "Don't stop."

"Do this, Bella. Be the one person I don't have to fight." The desperation in Edward's rough, broken voice nailed my heart to the wall. "Just let me take care of you. Why is that so hard?"

With a last light kiss at the hollow of my throat, Edward pulled back to look me in the eyes. For all that we'd seen of each other while dragging up traumas and facing new dangers, I'd never seen such unmasked pain in Edward's eyes. They hardly looked like they belonged on his face. In their emerald depths, I saw genuine fear that was impossible to ignore.

"This isn't just about last night," I surmised aloud. "What's really going on in there?" I brought my hands down to caress his face tenderly, showing him I was open and truly listening this time.

Edward stepped back from the wall, allowing me to see that the room had been vacated. He sat on the edge of my bed, cradling me on his lap. "I was too absent and too oblivious to understand for most of my life, but I was raised by addition, love. Whatever initial dissatisfaction drove them to it, drinking destroyed my father and pills might as well have put my mother in her grave. Eventually they will. I'm resigned to that."

"Edward—"

"I'll let you hate me, if that's your response to my actions, but I won't let that be your life. I'll spend a fortune to give you whatever treatment you need. I'll bribe whomever I need to have you declared incompetent and remanded to my custody if you refuse." I raised a disbelieving eyebrow to Edward's outlandish threat. "Try me," he dared. "Push me far enough and I'll toss you on a ghost flight to the precise center of No Man Has Stepped Foot Here to be tied down and forcibly detoxed."

I held back from rolling my eyes, not at his concern or overwhelming need to take control of the situation, but at how quickly Edward tended to fight the battle of wills by proving he could conceive of tactics no other man would consider or have the means to attempt. Like if I threatened to buy a hotdog, Edward would have every last edible mammal poisoned and slaughtered to spite me.

"Baby." I kissed between the furious eyes that had tolerated about all they could handle from me for one day. "I'm not an addict."

"You're displaying all the behaviors," he countered, unconvinced.

"You're jumping to conclusions because you have a terrible history with the subject. I can completely understand that. And the more I deny it, the more you'll cling to your diagnosis. Because once the A-word has been tossed out, nothing the person accused can say will rebut that accusation. But I'm telling you, I don't have an addictive personality. I never have. Trust me, I've been given enough reason to become one, but I'm just not."

I looked at him sincerely, hoping that he'd seen the truth in my eyes, but Edward started back at me like that immovable, impenetrable man I knew so well.

"Jasper was in here trying to talk some sense into me," I told him frankly. "But even he knows better. Yes, he wants me to stop drinking, but he didn't accuse me of being an alcoholic. That's just a step too far."

"Prove it," he demanded.

"And how can I do that?"

"Go cold turkey. Thirty days without a sip and I won't force you into therapy. If," he added, "you don't find some other way to self-destruct in the mean time."

"Go cold turkey. Thirty days without a sip and I won't force you into therapy. If," he added, "you don't find some other way to self-destruct in the mean time."

"Will it put this matter to bed?"

"Yes."

"Then I'll do it for you," I answered honestly. "I'd do anything for you, Edward. I love you." Edward relaxed his posture slightly, releasing a breath as he gained my acceptance. "But in the future, I wish you'd just come out and tell me what's bothering before you jump to issuing demands that I don't understand."

"I'd feel better if you were doing it for you," he answered admonishingly. I decided to let that one go.

"I'm not the one who needs convincing. This boils down to you not trusting me." Edward opened his mouth to protest, but I cut him off with my fingers against his lips. "I understand. Addiction, and the aftermath of that, is a trigger for you. How could you do anything but distrust? It's okay."

"Bella—"

"Just say thank you and let's drop the subject." I smirked at his reluctant scowl and brushed my hand through his hair.

"Thank you."

"Good." I pressed my lips to his in apology, knowing he'd interpret my meaning. Soothingly, Edward ran his hands through my hair and down my back. "My turn," I stated confidently as I suitably calmed him to a more agreeable level.

"Anything, love. You know that."

"Alice and Jasper are going with Carlisle and Esme to Rosalie's wedding in June." Best just to rip off the Band-Aid and let him fume. Expectantly, he groaned in exasperated response. "I don't know what, if anything, Alice said to her. So far, looks like the big day is still on."

"You know she's using you as a shield," Edward replied with restrained frustration. "Why do you let her hide behind you when all you are is disobedient with me?"

"I'll ignore that choice of words," I shot back. No sense in arguing the same tired point. "Anyway, I've never been to Boston. I want to see where you're from."

"Excuse me?"

"It's your turn to play tour guide."

If Edward was under the impression he was going to dry me out for a month and threaten me with rehab without so much as a little quid pro quo, he was quite mistaken.


	10. Chapter 10

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N:** Hopefully this makes up for the long delay. Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 10**

I was getting a bit smug. Five days into my bargain with Edward, I was cool as a cucumber. I think he was expecting jitters, mood swings, and other signs of withdrawal.

Ten days in and I was constructively letting out my built up stress over nightmares and general PTSD shittiness in the gym. During my lunch sessions with Emmett, and later while I waited for the guys to finish with Edward for the day, I would run a mile on the treadmill and then go at the punching bag for a while.

Fifteen days of living "clean and sober" and I finally had a heart-to-heart with my brothers about how I was really feeling since Atlantic City. Overall, I was still angry about being targeted, James nearly taking Edward from me, and my guys keeping me out of the loop when the decision was made to corner him and end it. The trauma of actually killing James had morphed into this cold numbness that I hardly felt anymore. I didn't think that was a good sign for my general sanity. It meant I was becoming desensitized to taking human life.

What did still bother me was the same anxiety I'd suffered since Mike: paranoia. I constantly felt like someone was waiting around every corner to strike out against me. That wasn't a pleasant way to live, but I did my best to hide it. As long as I wasn't alone, which really was rare, I wasn't so prone to panic. Edward bought me a bigger knife and let me sleep with it under my pillow. At least that argument had been put to rest.

My smugness was due to the ungraceful way Edward had to eat his words for every day I didn't have a complete nervous breakdown and beg for a drink. Frankly, I was offended the first time he accused me of sneaking Patron in my water bottle. I splashed it in his face and told him to taste it. In answer, he casually wiped his shirt over his face and suggested that my outburst was evidence of my addiction. To that, I offered him an option of punishment: I could key the Vanquish or launch a bottle of his fancy whisky off the condo balcony. Again, that was the end of that conversation.

Yes, I was all smugness and bite…right up to the week before Edward's fight in Charlotte and the end of my sequester. Sometimes I really fucking hated being a woman. Honestly, "insult to injury" doesn't come close to covering it. Giving up a month of drinking wasn't difficult for me so long as I avoided the bars. However, five days without my true addiction? Unacceptable. And yet, here we were.

Neither of us really thought this one through.

"You're really pissing me off, you know that?" Edward white-knuckled the steering wheel as we drove back to the house from the gym Friday night.

"Is that why you gave Troy a black eye?" My acidic reply met the harsh snarl of his announcement while I stared past the scenery outside the car.

"He'll learn to stay the fuck away from you or next time I'll snatch the eye out of his head."

Well, no arguments there. The oldest trainer on Emmett's staff and by far the least friendly, Troy and I got off on the wrong foot from day one and had been limping along, out of step, ever since. Neither Edward nor I had forgiven him for the "groupie" remark.

Today, while Edward appeared to be distracted in the cage with Garrett, Troy decided to issue a lecture about using gym equipment for my personal use when there were paying clients waiting. Winded and flush with adrenaline from attacks on the heavy bag, I had no patience for his bullshit. There were two others bags going unused; he was just being an ass.

It could have ended right there. I understood Troy had a habit of picking fights with me because, I don't know, he had a small dick. He expected me to make a snide comment in return and tell him to go fuck himself. However, he usually timed his attacks to make sure Edward wasn't in earshot. He was a prick, but not a complete moron. Unfortunately for him, Edward had a nasty habit of watching me out of the corner of his eye anytime we're in the same room together, even when he was dodging roundhouse kicks in the cage.

Needless to say, Edward hauled himself over to us the second he heard my angry retort. Edward stood a full foot taller than Troy as he shoved him back and demanded that he find something better to do than harass me.

Emmett and Jasper looked on patiently, waiting to see if they would have to step in. I'd told them a long time ago that Troy was a battle I could fight on my own. Yeah, I could play the best friend card and ask Emmett to fire him, but that was a poor way to handle personality differences when it came to business. It was Troy's own damn fault for what happened next. He literally asked for it.

"Take your best shot, kid." Troy issued the challenge and Edward was more than happy to comply. The right hook was far from Edward's best shot, but enough to make his point.

"How do you think I feel?" I answered to Edward's announcement. He had to know I was suffering just as painfully. "You're not the only one who isn't thrilled with the situation. Oh, and to top it off, I'm the one with cramps, so fuck off."

He knew I didn't mean it. Frankly, the angry bickering over my period was a monthly occurrence. It was just our way of working out some of the sexual frustration. The bitter words were hollow and usually just a form of foreplay until we were frantically groping each other all the way to the bedroom.

"You're getting the shot," he growled. "I'm sick of this shit."

That was new. Yeah, we usually stomped around and huffed like petulant children during my time of the month when we had to put the breaks on sex, but this week had been worse. Edward was scuffling at the gym and generally at the end of his patience.

Because he had a fight coming up, I realized. He was in prep mode and keeping himself on the edge of his control until he could unleash it in the cage on his next opponent. Where he would normally find calm and comfort in my body at night, he wasn't getting his drug. I understood that perfectly.

"Screw that noise," I scoffed dismissively. Where did Edward get off thinking he could make personal medical decisions for me? "The shot can have wicked side effects. I'm not doing it."

"You're being irrational."

"You're being bossy."

"Fine," he bit curtly, "then I'll fuck you in the shower. Call it a compromise."

"Absolutely not!" Edward had a skewed concept of the term "compromise." He was well aware of my total aversion to having sex while I was on my period. Simply put, it was gross. Besides, I was still taking care of him in other ways. My time of the month didn't put the kibosh on blowjobs—if he behaved.

"Damn it, Bella. Why are you torturing me? Is this retribution for not drinking?"

"Really, Edward? I'm doing this to you?" Incredulity with a splash of bitter humor lubricated my tone as I shot him a disapproving look. "Your fight is with my uterus, not me. Why don't you just start at stomach real hard and command it to stop."

I tried. I really, really did. For six whole seconds I remained firm in my icy stare that held the handsome fury of Edward's profile. Then a little smirk began to twist my lips as I attempted to trap it from spreading further. Likewise, Edward's jaw clenched and the muscles twitched with the apparent effort he exerted not to smile.

We both burst into laughter at the absurdity of the notion that Edward could mystically exert the same force of will be held over the rest of my body to control the involuntary functions of my lady parts. Sick bastard, he'd probably tried. He likely lay awake at night wishing for such a super power.

"You have to understand my torment," he stated softly. "I haven't been inside you in three days."

"I—"

"Your mouth is fantastic, love. Spectacular. But there is nothing that comes close to burying myself in your soft little cunt."

Fuck. If it weren't bad enough, a needy rush of heat spread out under my skin and concentrated between my legs. I wanted him so desperately I was considering breaking all sorts of rules.

"Don't say things like that to me now," I begged him.

"Three days since I've had you on my tongue," he continued in that darkly seductive tone that broke my will every time he purposefully leveraged it against me. "And three days since I've felt your tight pussy squeezing my cock while you come all over me."

"Damn it, Edward." I groaned, twisting in the leather passenger seat and squeezing my thighs together.

He glanced down, both a look of predatory want and cocky amusement on that perfectly devilish face of his. "Exactly."

He pulled the car to the curb in front of the house and quickly walked around the outside to open the door for me. I took his hand as he helped me out, and the second he door closed behind me, Edward shoved me back to wedge me between his muscular body and the hard metal of the car. His long fingers bit into my skin where he grabbed me by the hips to pin me in place.

Edward's kiss was angry and violent in the most passionate sense, communicating his desire for me that had too long gone hungry. I raised my knee and hooked my ankle around his thigh, drawing him between my legs to grind his erection where I so desperately wanted to feel him. My hands fisted in his hair and tugged, eliciting a primal moan from Edward as he slid his tongue over mine.

"I need you," he whispered against my lips. "So goddamn bad, love."

"I know, baby. I want you," I sighed in defeat. "You know I do."

"Let me have you," he insisted in a strained and gravelly voice. Edward kisses down the edge of my jaw and licked at my neck.

"No."

Sharp, angry teeth bit into my flesh just below my ear. "You're mine, Bella. I want to be inside you."

"We're in the front yard."

"I'll bend you over and fuck you on the hood for all I care." Edward's hands released my hips and slid deliberately up my ribs until he cupped both of my heavy breasts and pinched my nipples forcefully.

Involuntarily, my head fell back against the car and my back arched to shove my chest into his hands. Edward's teeth dragged over the skin on my exposed neck, followed by his very capable tongue. "Please," I whimpered, "Edward."

"That's my girl," he purred. Edward released one breast to shove his hand down the front of my jeans and into my panties. Stunned, I grabbed his wrist.

"No," I told him earnestly. Green eyes of burning desire glared at me. If hatred had been the emotion behind them, I couldn't have felt more intimidated under their fury. But it wasn't hatred, it was primal need and hurt dejection.

"Fucking Christ," Edward hissed as he dropped his head and yanked on the waist of my panties to make a point. Under protest, he pulled his hand out and took a step back. "Fine," he snarled again. It was becoming his new favorite word. "I'll dry hump you like a fucking teenager and you can suck me off."

Gee, it sounded so romantic when he said it that way. Still, I couldn't help but giggle a little at his irritation. It was kind of cute on a man who was so used to getting what he wanted and even more accustomed to winning his fights.

He growled something under his breath as I straightened myself up and preceded him to the front door. I didn't get three steps before he smacked my ass. "It'll be hard to keep that smirk on your beautiful face when you've got your lips around my cock."

Always had to have the last word.

At the front door, Edward snatched my keys out of my hand and unlocked the door with his signature impatience. In one fluid motion, he tossed me over his shoulder and slammed the door behind us.

"Caveman," I admonished him playfully.

Truly, I adored this side of him. He could huff and growl all he liked, it didn't scare me when I knew all of it was just a response to the maddening attraction and consuming love we had for each other. I was the one thing in his life he couldn't function without. Likewise, I'd come to terms with the fact that I was useless without him now that I'd abandoned all hope of ever being cured of my addition for him.

"Tease," he snapped back.

I expected him to stalk into my bedroom and toss me down on the plush softness of my kingsize bed. Instead, it was a very short trip until my back met cool leather and Edward threw his body on top of me.

"Hey." I grabbed his jaw between both hands and looked him in the eyes. "What do you think you're doing? Have you forgotten this is going to be a full house very soon?"

"No." Edward gripped both of my wrists and raised them above my head as he used one knee to pry my legs open to accommodate him.

Powerfully, he pressed his hips to mine and ground his hardened cock against my clit. I moaned in relief for the friction and in protest to the show we'd be putting on when Jasper and Emmett arrived with Alice and Garrett.

"Edward—"

My mouth was covered and my warning silenced as he devoured my lips. I struggled ineffectually to free my hands, even as I willingly gave his tongue access. Edward was far too strong to escape when he had me stretched out and prone underneath his full weight. But fuck, he felt so good. My temperature rose considerably with the heat of his body covering mine completely.

"Wrap your legs around me," he commanded. His voice was rough, evidence of his thin hold on control. It felt too right to deny obeying, so I did as I was told. "Good girl." I was rewarded for my compliance when Edward moved both of my wrists into one hand and then ran the free palm down the length of my body to squeeze me ass.

Using the hold as leverage, he titled my body up to meet his undulating movements against my sex. The position was so much better, forcing me to constrict my thighs around him and writhe beneath his perfect body.

"Tell me you're in as much pain as I am," he whispered against my neck. "Tell me you're suffering every second I'm not filling you, Bella."

"Yes, Edward." I panted, my skin tingling for the rushed breaths and insufficient oxygen they pulled in. "I do miss feeling you, baby. You know I hate this as much as you do."

The monthly ceasefire was exactly like a forced detox. We went from taking daily hits, sometimes multiple times a day, to total denial. Like Edward's resentment toward blowjobs, letting him rub me to climax through my panties was infuriatingly inadequate to the pure ecstatic pleasure we felt when we came undone together making love.

"Not good enough," he rasped. Edward released my backside and yanked my shirt up to my neck. Roughly, he shoved my bra up as well, exposing my bare breasts to his lips. "I'm suffering without you, love. It is agony."

Edward licked the valley between my breasts in one long drag of his tongue. My increasingly heavy breathing made my chest rise higher to meet him. In contrast to the forceful way he'd taken me to this point, Edward's softly sumptuously lips caressed one nipple while his hand tenderly needed my other breast and rubbed his thumb over the tiny hardened pebble.

I moaned wantonly to his expert manipulation of my body, his hips still rubbing us into frenzy. With every stroke and delicate tug of his teeth on my nipple, he drove me closer to climax. The words that tumbled unevenly out of me were an unconscious repose to the way this man fully commanded my every desire and fulfilled each need.

"I'm hollow without you," I declared in a whisper. "I'm incomplete. I'm suffocating when you aren't near me and wilting inside when you aren't touching me." Edward raised his head to meet my eyes. I stared back, falling into the brilliant and bottomless depth of him. "The first time you said you wouldn't make love to me before your fight I felt like my chest would collapse. And I love every second of it. I crave the pain and emptiness because it reminds me what we have is real and wonderful and terrifying."

Edward released my wrists and captured my face reverently between both his strong hands. It was home. "Love still isn't strong enough to properly describe what I feel for you, angel. It is total obsession."

"I obsess you too," I answered with a silly grin. He looked so vulnerable above me, and in that moment I understood.

Edward and I operated at full throttle; we didn't have a lower gear to downshift. More complicated was the truth that much of our relationship was held together by physical affection. I wasn't good with talking about my feelings and Edward had abandonment issues that made him needy for affirmation where I was concerned. Okay, we were both guilty of that one.

I couldn't recall the last time I'd really opened up and reminded Edward that I was fully and completely his—infatuated to the point of a truly unhealthy codependence. It had been too long since I said the words aloud and he needed to hear it.

"Come," Edward ordered gently. "I need it."

"Make me," I answered with a sly expression.

Edward's eyes flashed hot and deadly. He placed his lips against mine as he quickly unfastened my jeans to grant his hand access. Leaving my underwear in place, he circled his fingertips around my clit with perfect speed and pressure. In seconds, I was writhing and whimpering to his touch.

"You're so fucking gorgeous, love. So perfect when you're falling apart for me."

"Please," I begged, because I knew he liked it. "You feel so good, baby." I pressed my head back into the leather couch and arched my neck, inviting him.

Heading my call, Edward sped his fingers' ministrations against my clit while kissing down my neck to suck and lick at the heated flesh he'd flushed red. With his hand between my thighs, I was his to command to bliss.

I felt the warning of my orgasm tightening as my sex clenched convulsively and my hips rose to press myself more firmly against Edward's fingers.

"I can't wait to taste you come on my tongue," Edward purred against my ear, letting his breath tickle my skin. "Licking your sweet little cunt while you quiver against my mouth," he teased in a rasp. "Sucking your clit between my lips and biting until you're screaming my name."

"Fuck Edward. Yes, baby. I…" Some other unintelligible sounds tangled my tongue as my climax burst through me like a train crashing through the front door. Loud enough that the B&Bs next door must have heard me, I cried out Edward's name and squeezed his hand between my thighs. In answer, Edward bit down on my shoulder, stifling his own gravely moan.

One of these days, I'd get him to come just but watching me.

Two car doors shut outside.

"Shit!"

Scrambling like I really was a teenager about to be caught getting naughty with her boyfriend, I put my bra back in place and lowered my shirt. When I tried to shove Edward off of me, he leisurely tugged down my pants just enough to lower his face between my legs and bite down on my sensitive clit. I yelped in surprise, smacking the top of his head in shock.

"They're home," I whisper-yelled at him. "Get off."

"Make me," he repeated with that crooked smile that soaked my panties all over again.

Next, I was once again tossed over Edward's shoulder and carried off to the bedroom. He clicked the door shut behind him just as we heard my brothers and his sister walk into the house.

"That was way too close," I chided him.

Edward plopped me down on the bed, still sporting his triumphantly mischievous smirk. If I didn't love that look so much, I'd really find him insufferable.

"Don't you trust me?"

"When you're not smiling like that, yeah." His smirk only grew wider and smugger. Standing at the foot of my bed, Edward removed his T-shirt to put his incomparable physique on full display for me. Not even a little bit shy, I licked my lips and bit down on my bottom lip while greedily scanning his body.

"Mine," I asserted.

"And those lips are mine." I knew those words; he'd said them the first time he told me to take him into my mouth. My eyes fell to the sizable bulge in his pants. "You know what I want."

I reached my hand out and tugged Edward forward by the waist of his jeans. On my feet in front of him, I stripped Edward bare and took a moment to kiss and lick across his bare chest. Just for good measure, I bit down on one nipple and elicited a sharp hiss in return.

"On your knees," Edward commanded.

"On the bed," I shot back and shoved him down to sit at the edge. He was mine now, and I would do this my way. Totally at my mercy.

* * *

**End Notes: **Are you getting the sneaking suspicion that Edward secretly wants to get caught?


	11. Chapter 11

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

**Chapter 11**

Edward was breathing hard and fully blissed out as he pulled me off the floor and dragged me up his body to collapse back on the bed. "Fuck, love." He wrapped both arms around my back and cradled my face to his chest. I inhaled him deeply, smelling of sex and us after our romp on the couch his violent orgasm down my throat. "You're going to be the death of me," he whispered breathlessly. "One of these days I'm going to have a stroke and keel over with your lips around my cock."

"Please don't," I laughed lightly. "I don't think a girl could ever get over something like that. I'd be scarred for life and never have sex again."

"Then that settles it," he quipped. "Death by blow job is how I want to go out. I want you ruined for all other men."

"Yeah, too late." I ran my fingers across his chest and stomach, tracing the lines of his muscles that twitched under my touch. "I think you hit that milestone a long time ago."

"You think?" Edward reached down and pinched my ass. Delicate male egos. "Care to rephrase that?"

"I don't know," I teased sweetly. "It's been a long time since I was with anyone else. My memory is a little fuzzy."

"Keep it up," Edward warned roughly. "Next time I bend you over, you won't walk right for a week."

"Promises, promises."

Edward growled and flipped us over so that he covered my body with the length of his. I giggled at his temper and frustrated glare, kissing under his jaw in a show of surrender.

"Edward, consider this an early birthday present: you have a magnificent dick and are by far the best lover I've ever had. Consider me fully and thoroughly ruined for anyone but you."

"Goddamn right," he answered proudly.

Three loud knocks startled me. Actually, the sound was unmistakably Emmett's bear claw pounding on my bedroom door.

"What?" Edward shouted over his shoulder with irritation.

"My couch smells like sex," he announced louder than necessary to be heard through the door.

Fuck it; I was in no mood to be teased by my crude and sex-deprived brother. "Jealous," I shouted back.

"That an invitation?"

Edward was off me and marching—butt-ass naked—to the door in two seconds. He stopped, however, when we heard Emmett's pained "Ow!" through the door.

Alice.

"Carry on," she trilled as muffled whispers drifted down the hallway. This house had gotten much too crowded and the couplings were more than a little awkward. That thought was confirmed when Edward turned around annoyed and fully soft.

His expression was a familiar one as he stalked over to the bed and sat on the edge. It was the look that said every day he wanted to take Emmett to the ground and explain the boundaries with his fist. He really did like Emm, just not when my best friend was being stupid and flirty with me.

"Please don't let it ruin your night," I asked as I sat up and climbed onto his lap to run my hands through his hair and scratch the stubble on his chin. "Emm only does that in front of you because he respects you." Edward's expression twisted to disbelief. "Okay, I know that sounds ridiculous, but that's just how his brain works. If he actually meant any of the stuff he says to me—he doesn't—he wouldn't say it in front of you. He approves of you and he shows that by not treating you any differently that he treats me or Jasper or Alice. That's just his way of saying you're in the family."

"I'd be happy with a Hallmark card or a tacky coffee mug." Edward was grumpy, which was the closest he ever came to pouting.

I knew Emmett got under his skin with the sexual comments, but I wouldn't ask my brothers to change for anything. I loved them exactly as they were and Edward would eventually get used to it. Besides, once Emmett got a steady girl, he'd take it down a notch.

"I told you the first morning that he had a major man crush on you. I think maybe he's just trying to get your attention." I smiled hopefully as I titled my head to coax a similar reaction from Edward. Despite himself, his lips curved just a little. Good enough.

xXx

What was supposed to be family dinner in the kitchen and a relaxed night of watching movies turned into an impromptu celebration for Herbie Keitel. Brody had called Jasper while Edward and I were otherwise indisposed to announce he had major news. By the time Edward and I emerged from my bathroom after I'd showered again and Edward iced down in the tub, Brody and Caleb were with the rest of our gang in the backyard around the bonfire. There was also a conspicuous stranger sitting with them.

"There's my girl," Brody greeted me with a tight hug as Edward and I stepped out the sliding glass door to the back porch. The grill was going, Emmett stood over the only cooking mechanism he knew how to use.

Brody abruptly released me with his eyes on Edward. "Nice to you see again, Cullen." He held out his hand and then winced when Edward shook it, probably with a stronger grip than necessary.

"I hear you have news," I answered to Brody while Edward wrapped his possessive arm around my hip and tucked me to his side.

"Huge," he smiled brightly. "Here," Brody bent down a grabbed a cold Blue Moon from the cooler beside him, "I remembered."

"She's not drinking." Edward pushed the beer away, though I didn't bother to reach for it.

"Oh," Brody furrowed his brow as he silently questioned me. The look asked if he should heed Edward's statement.

"Yeah, I'm cleansing, you know? Taking it easy for a little while."

"Sure." Brody put the drink back in the cooler and nodded, his eyes darted around uncomfortably for a moment before he cleared his throat. "So like I said, big news."

"I'm on the edge of my seat. Is that the new bassist?" I nodded toward the guy sitting with Caleb.

"Yeah, Mark. He's got mad skills and is really well connected at some of the better clubs up the coast. He's worked with a lot of bands and even done some recording."

"How'd you land him?" I didn't mean for the question to sound derogatory, but Brody laughed and shrugged in a somewhat self-deprecating manner.

"His girlfriend is a fan. I'd never met her, but apparently she came to a lot of our shows. Caleb and I ran into her in the music store a couple months ago and she asked when we were playing again. I explained that we were short a bass player. Holly told us about Mark and we set up a jam session to try each other out."

"That's a beautiful story," I teased affectedly.

"Yeah, yeah. Love at first sight," he chuckled. "Anyway, that's not the news."

"So spit it out already," I demanded.

"We've been invited to an indie showcase festival in two weeks," he beamed. "As soon as Mark got on board, he said we should audition. He got us into that little studio up in Key Largo and we cut a short demo—just three songs. He has a buddy that does admin stuff for the festival and he put the disc in the guy's hands. We just got the call this morning."

"Brody!" I yanked him into a hug, ecstatic for my friend. "That's fantastic. I'm so proud of you."

He pushed himself free of me quickly and nervously smiled as his eyes darted between Edward and me. Great, he had the fear of death in him now. "Only like three or four bands ever get signed at each one of these things, but it is still a bigger crowd than we've ever played and it will get our name out there to the right people."

"Don't play it down. This is an amazing opportunity and you've worked hard to get this far. You deserve to be proud."

"Thanks," he responded with an appreciative smile. "I'm fucking nervous as hell, but I'm so stoked. I really want you three there to see us. You've been there for us every step of the way."

"Absolutely. We wouldn't miss this for anything. Front row center," I assured him.

"Which festival?" Edward asked.

"South of South in Gainesville."

"Gator country? Now I'm definitely in." I looked up at Edward, thrilled I had an excuse to drag him up to my alma mater. "I can show you around UF," I told him.

"I'll book the arrangements," he agreed. He looked back to Brody with a polite smile. "How are you getting up there?"

"We'll take Caleb's van with our gear Friday morning. We've got to be there at seven to sign in and meet with the festival producers. We play Saturday."

"You'll fly with us," Edward arbitrarily decided. "That's a long drive overnight."

"Hey, I appreciate it, but—"

"Good. It's settled. I'll hire the charter. Send Bella a list of your road cases so the flight crew can plan accordingly for the weight. I'll see to it that there's a vehicle waiting to transport your gear from the airport."

"Edward, that's very generous of you." My statement was appreciative, but also somewhat admonishing for the way he'd railroaded Brody into accepting the handout.

"Yeah, man. I uh…I really don't think I can accept it." Brody looked nervous and definitely overwhelmed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"You can," Edward answered definitively. "You've done the work to get this invitation, now you should take the opportunity to be prepared and well rested for your performance."

Why was it that a kind gesture from Edward still sounded like a condescending command? For the first time, I was actually embarrassed by him.

"It'll be fun," I offered to Brody. "Travel like rock stars to your gig. You're going to be a big deal now. Soon you'll be too famous to hang out with the simple island folk."

That got a laugh out of Brody and seemed to ease the discomfort. "Right," he answered sarcastically. "I guess I should start testing G5s."

xXx

The rest of our evening was pleasantly mellow as the group got to know Mark and enjoyed good conversation around the fire. As it turned out, Mark had some great stories from the road, which were enough to make even Emmett blush.

A leggy and vaguely familiar blonde showed up late in the evening; a friend of Alice's who I later remembered to be Kate, the hostess from Hard Rock. A cringe-worthy pissing contest took place between Emm and Garrett for her attentions, but by midnight, she was firmly planted in Garrett's lap and enthralled by his cage exploits. Poor Emm.

"You ready to call it a night?" Edward leaned over to whisper in my ear, tickling my ribs to tell me he was done sharing and wanted me to himself. Like I'd say no to that.

"Sure. I'm going to use the restroom and then we can head back to your place."

"Our place," he corrected and pressed a kiss against my neck.

Lately, Edward had been making that distinction more often. I knew he was getting impatient for me to make the move formal, but it still felt like a big step that my legs weren't long enough to take.

"Our place," I repeated. No chance I was opening that argument tonight. He knew the reasons I still called this house my primary residence, not the least of which was the convenience of catching rides to work with Emmett. I liked our arrangement the way it was. We spent every night together. Why did it matter which address my mail was sent to?

I got up and went inside toward my room. Before I turned the corner, Emmett's voice called to me from the Kitchen. "Bells?"

"Yeah?"

"Hey," he poked his head out as he met me in the living room. "I forgot to mention, you got a call at the gym after you left."

"Okay?"

"Some guy with an accent," Emmett shrugged.

"Can you be a little more specific?" I didn't have a clue who'd be calling for me at the gym. The only people I ever took a phone call from were at this house."

"He didn't give me a name or leave a message, but he sounded like he knew you."

"I got nothing. Sorry. Maybe it was just some joker making a prank call."

We'd gotten a few of those at the gym once the story broke about James and Last Resort was mentioned. Idiots would call and hang up and make all kinds of stupid comments.

"Yeah, maybe."

"Edward and I are going to head out. You kids be good while I'm gone, okay?"

"No promises," he grinned. If only he had any trouble to get into, but he didn't.

xXx

I was captivated as I watched Edward and Garrett enter the third round of Edward's last sparring session before we left for Charlotte tomorrow. My fighter was in top form; a vicious and agile predator inflicting his will against his prey. By the end of the second round, I saw the shift take place. Edward stopped holding back and Garrett began to defend like a man backed into a corner. Frequently, that's exactly where he found himself.

Edward was relentless in pushing Garrett around the cage and forcing him to retreat. Every time he did, he only played further into Edward's plan. For an American kickboxer like Garrett, the clench was a bad place to be against a muay Thai fighter. Where Garrett needed distance to be his most effective, Edward was dangerous with punishing knees to his ribs and stomach coupled with sharp elbows to the face. If not for Garrett's headgear and pads, he'd be in a world of hurt.

At then end of the round, Garrett wore a relieved smile. I'd be happy to survive with my life, too. How anyone in his right mind willingly stepped into a cage against Edward, I had no idea.

I waited patiently while the guys cooled down and talked shop in the cage for a few more minutes. I didn't mind the view from my seat on the bench, greedily taking in the sight of Edward leaning over the top of the cage, covered in sweat, his hair damp and wild, and his stomach muscles expanding and contracting with each heavy breath. Yep, I could appreciate him for hours. And then I'd get him all sweaty again.

After five days, the standoff was finally over. We had a lot of time to make up for.

"Bells?" Emmett stood beside me, pulling me out of my daydream.

"Huh?"

"Robert called from the league commission, he needs Edward to sign a few more things. I guess someone was supposed to send it over this morning but it didn't get done. He's on his way back to the office to email it over. Do you mind sticking around to print it out and get Edward to sign it? We need to put it in the late FedEx drop before six and I've got to run by the bank before it closes."

"No problem. I don't mind. It will take Edward awhile to shower and get dressed anyway."

"Thanks. You're a doll. I left the keys on the desk to lock up when you're done. Jasper's heading out with Garrett to meet Alice and Kate." He kissed the top of my head and took off quickly. I liked seeing Emmett so giddy. He was excited about Edward's debut in the new league and had been bouncing around for the past two days. His energy was infectious.

I returned to Emmett's office to wait on the email and busied myself with reading the articles previewing Edward's fight. Jason Bridges had an MMA record of 17-9-1 and seven years of professional fights under his belt, including his time in traditional martial arts. He was an aikido specialist, not that common in MMA, but otherwise well rounded in more typical mixed martial arts disciplines. Most writers who followed the sport speculated that this was likely the thirty-two-year-old's last year as a professional fighter before retirement.

Most of the articles painted him as a patient fighter that preferred to exploit the weaknesses in his opponent's attacks rather than be the outright aggressor. By traditional wisdom, that was a poor strategy by the MMA scoring system. However, his record clearly spoke to the fact that his strategy worked more than it failed. On paper, he was the perfect opponent for Edward.

Edward could be patient if he was so inclined, but he far preferred to push his own pace during the fight. He was always the aggressor. Their drastically contrasting styles would prove for an entertaining bout, where the outcome would likely be decided by Edward making a mistake to be exploited—not likely—or Jason being summarily overpowered. I was hoping for a quick knockout and an early victory celebration.

The quiet ping of the mail client alerted me to the new message and I downloaded the files from the league commission and then printed them out for Edward to sign. I set out a FedEx envelope and filled out the address information.

"Hello, gorgeous." Edward stood in the doorway to Emmett's office, filling the tight space with his imposing form.

"You haven't showered," I noted in confusion. He was still shiny with sweat and wearing the little shorts that hugged his tight ass and firm thighs. "I've got some paperwork you need to sign. We need to drop it at FedEx to overnight it in…" I looked at the time on the computer screen, "forty minutes. Get going," I ordered.

Doing just the opposite, Edward stepped through the threshold and closed the door behind him. Through the window that faced the lobby, I saw Jasper and Garrett leave. Edward turned the lock to the office door with a slow click.

"I heard," he answered softly. "Robert's oversight is not my emergency. They'll get the documents a little late. As long as they're signed before I get in the cage, everyone is covered."

I'd read over them briefly. Mostly it was just the agreement that if Edward was killed or maimed during the fight, we couldn't sue the league, the venue, or the sponsors. Standard lawyer stuff.

"Sometimes I think you like being difficult," I answered as he stalked forward.

"I'm sure it's a talent I developed from you." No amusement played on Edward's face. His expression was serious; tight lips, clenched jaw, and hooded eyes. I swallowed and gripped the armrests of my chair.

"You have something I want," Edward stated smoothly.

"That right?" I tried for nonchalance or maybe indifference, but the crack in my voice gave me away. He was really going to do this. Here. Now.

"Take off anything you don't want me to destroy," he ordered from the other side of the desk. "I'm not going to be gentle."

"Edward—" I began to protest and argue some sense into the man, but he wasn't having it. The moratorium had been lifted after a brutal five days and he wasn't going to waste a second. Edward came around the desk and swiftly hauled me out of the chair.

With my backside pressed to the edge of the desk, Edward grabbed two fistfuls of my hair and sealed his lips over mine. A moan of relief poured from me and into him. I wrapped my arms around his back and dragged my nails down his slick skin and hard muscles. He smelled raw and masculine, the scent of his exertion pouring over me and sinking into my clothes.

"I'm going to take my time with you at home tonight," he promised, "but if I don't come inside you now I'll never last. You're too tight and it's been too long."

"Emmett will know. He's got some perverse sixth sense. He's like a German Shepherd."

Edward licked the shell of my ear and whispered low against my skin. "I don't care. I'm going to have you right here. On this desk. Right now." I felt him press himself against my stomach and realized the bulge insisting against me wasn't his athletic cup. This man had actually gone through the trouble of going to the locker room, undressing, and then re-dressing to have the moment just like this. "Strip, baby. Or I'll rip it all off your body."

I was motionless for a long beat. Even my lungs were gripped by immobility as I deliberated Edward's demand. Why did it feel like having sex with Edward in this office was such a taboo? I wasn't proud to admit I'd taken lovers in all manner of unconventional places. In my brother's business…it felt like a betrayal, almost. Maybe that wasn't the right word, but it felt wrong somehow.

I'd missed my window. Edward kicked my chair out of the way and then yanked my T-shirt over my head. Quickly, I was lifted onto the surface of the desk. My pants were yanked free of my body and my panties torn away from my skin with a sharp sting. Edward took each of my ankles in his hands, spread my legs wide, and planted my feet flat on the cold wood. I was forced to lean back, supporting my weight on my flat palms.

Edward hungrily raked his glowing green eyes over my nakedness. For him, I was exposed, open, and completely vulnerable. Through he thin fabric of his shorts, I saw every hard inch of him swell in anticipation of impaling me. My sex clenched with need to be filled, stretched, and claimed. I was throbbing with the ache Edward inspired in me, wanting nothing more than to be owned and consumed. All other thoughts were silenced by the way he looked at me so passionately.

"You're incredible," he praised softly. "How did I get this lucky?"

"Edward," I pleaded, "please, baby. Don't make me wait."

"Apologies, love." He licked his lips and dragged his eyes back to mine as he stepped forward and then kneeled before me. "The sight of you never ceases to impress me."

Wit his long fingers gripping my thighs, Edward hummed as he licked the flat of his tongue through my slit, the tip pressing into my opening before it trailed up to flick over my clit. "So fucking sweet," he moaned, squeezing the soft flesh of my inner thighs a little harder. "Lie back, Bella. I need your hands."

I did as he said, resting my back flat on the desk and moving my hands down to capture fistfuls of his hair between my fingers. His tongue lathered me in pleasure, sweeping through my sex and plunging teasingly inside. Edward's soft, plump lips caressed my clit to suck with just the right force while flicking his tongue over the sensitive button.

I wanted to watch him devour me; his face buried between my legs and mouth feasting on me so ardently. I wanted to witness the expression as he moved his eyes to mine and moaned in appreciation of my taste. I was, however, too overcome by his overwhelming talent to keep my eyes open as I bucked my hips into him and fought the iron hold he kept on my thighs as I tried to suffocate him between my legs. Instead, all I could do was hold his face where I needed him and cry out with nonsensical pleas as he jolted my body alive with a powerful burst of electric ecstasy.

It took far longer than normal for me to find a sustainable combination of heartbeats and breath. Edward continued to lick at me, pushing his tongue inside to lap at my moisture, until I was twitching and squirming away from him. I was too sensitive, past that point where so much post-orgasm attention turns nearly to pain.

"So perfect," Edward whispered as he stood and wrapped his arms around my back to sit me up. His lips molded over mine, sliding his tongue inside my mouth and infusing my taste into the kiss. I wrapped my legs around his hips, grasping at slick biceps as we fed on each other. "I want to bend you over this desk," he breathed darkly. "Watching my dick disappear inside you with that cute little ass in my hands."

"I'm yours," I answered. "Have me."

"Such a good girl." Edward trailed sensual kisses down my neck to the flat of my chest and then deliberately over the swell of each breast. Cradling the soft flesh in both hands, he gently squeezed and nuzzled his nose through the valley. His thumbs teased at my nipples and he turned his face to lick and one and then the other. "Fantastic tits."

Edward stepped back and picked my pants off the floor. He rolled them into a pillow, of sorts, and placed it on the edge of the desk. "Turn around," he instructed me.

I hopped down and turned my back to Edward. With one hand on my shoulder and the other keeping my rolled pants in place, he bent me over so that the front of my hips were resting on the fabric cushion rather than the sharp edge of the desk. He might not intend to be gentle after he was inside me, but he'd make sure I was comfortable. The only marks allowed on my body were the ones he put there, not furniture.

Both hands on my hips, Edward angled my backside where he wanted me and pressed down at the small of my back. I felt his fingers trace my scar—he always did any time he was in a position to inspect it so blatantly. Likewise, my fingers always trailed over the scar under his hairline a few more times than necessary when I ran my hands through his scalp. Those reminders of what we'd been through and the pain we'd overcome were just another thread of what held us together—the connection that went deeper than lust.

Edward slid his hands up and down my spine, warming me and lighting my nerves on fire. One hand disappeared as I felt him slip out of his shorts behind me. I whimpered impatiently while he stroked the wide head of his cock through my heat, coating himself and spreading my moisture.

"Okay?" he asked quietly.

"Yes."

"Grip the front of the desk."

I tucked my fingers under the lip, bracing myself for Edward's penetration. Aligned at my entrance, I felt the crest of his throbbing cock notch inside me. "Don't be afraid to scream," he whispered. "No one will hear you but me."

"Please," I begged, needing him to fill me and put to rest our excruciating ordeal. On command, Edward thrust forward to plunge the full depth of my channel. The welcome intrusion was hard, fast, and pried me open so purposefully. He didn't stall or pause for us to become reacquainted with the sensation of our connection. Instead, Edward made good on his promise, proceeding to exert impressive strength as he drove into me repeatedly and impatiently.

If not for the cushion that protected me from the hard edge of the desk, Edward might have snapped me in half. As it was, the energy he exerted against my backside every time his hips slammed against my ass sent a vibrating shockwave up my spine and through each limb.

"So good, love." Edward was breathless as he ground out the words. "Fuck, I missed you."

His penetration was deep, commanding, and broke through each of my senses until all I could feel was Edward's body filling me. His fingers bit into the soft flesh of my backside, surely leaving the imprint of his grip on my bare bottom. I pushed my hands flat to the desk and met each of his trusts greedily. My sex rippled and clenched around his, sucking him in further with each plunge.

"That's it, Bella. Squeeze my cock. So goddamn tight, love."

Edward wrapped one arm around my hip and wound the other across my chest to firmly cup my breast. He pulled me from the desk and held my back against his chest. His fingers slid down to massage my clit and I whimpered for his attention. He pinched one nipple, shooting a thrill of electricity through my body that centered between my legs and I clenched around him.

"Yes, baby. Edward."

I was on the edge, so close to falling over the edge of overwhelming pleasure. Edward's thrusts were shorted but all the more insistent as he pounded into me vigorously.

The phone rang, startling me to the point I actually seized and went rigid in his arms. It rang again, breaking into my bliss like nails on a chalkboard. I groaned in annoyance.

"Answer it," Edward grunted in my ear.

"What? No!"

Edward smacked my sensitive flesh. He smacked me right over my fucking clit and I yelped in shock and outrage. "Answer it, Bella. On speaker."

The phone continued to ring.

Edward stilled inside me.

"I swear to God, I will take you over my knee," he threatened with a tone I'd rarely heard from him. "Answer the damn phone."

I reached out and pressed the button to accept the call from Emmett's office phone. So help me, I don't know why. With Edward's cock seated fully inside me, I answered the fucking telephone in my brother's office.

"Last Resort," I greeted. Despite my attempt to sound composed, my voice shook. Edward relaxed fractionally as I obeyed his command.

"Bella?"

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck-shit-damn.

"Jake." I turned my head and glared at Edward over my shoulder. His expression was a mask of possessive lust. He started to move inside me, gently undulating his hips against me while his fingers teased at my clit. Bastard.

"Hey," Jake replied hesitantly. "I wasn't sure if you'd still be in the office."

"Just finishing up." My eyes remained tightly locked on Edward's. I was fully ticked and now devising all manner of punishments for this ridiculous stunt. "Were you looking for Emmett? He already went home."

"Uh…no. I don't have your cell number. I was looking for you."

I hadn't seen or heard from him since getting home from Atlantic City five months ago. After the arrests and Paul being charged and held without bail until the trial, Jake had apparently left town. I didn't expect him to come back, much less call looking for me. All the guilt that plagued me when I first realized he had left came flooding back to the forefront of my mind.

We weren't especially close before all hell broke loose, but we had forged a friendship. That seemed thoroughly shot to shit by now.

Edward was oblivious or simply didn't give a fuck as he continued to slide gracefully in and out of my body. His lips began an exploratory path down the side of my neck, nipping and suckling at my flesh. I had a mind to smack him.

"I'm coming home tonight. In a couple hours, actually. I'm in Miami waiting on my flight. Any chance you might want to get together after I get in? You know, talk."

Edward thrust into me harder, as a hint that he wasn't at all thrilled with that plan. Truthfully, I was more inclined to avoid Jacob. Or rather, I was inclined to avoid acknowledging the guilt he inspired in me. Damn coward that I was, I didn't want to face him and see the betrayal in his eyes.

Edward sped his pace, driving into me with renewed purpose as I pondered. He made the decision for me.

"Yeah," I answered while trying my best to not sound like I was taking it from behind by my possessive pervert of a boyfriend. Edward growled low in my ear and angrily cupped my sex, telling me he'd have smacked me again if it weren't for the obvious sound it would make. "I can meet you. Do you need a ride from the airport?"

"You don't have to go out of your way. I can catch a cab or something."

"I'll pick you up. I can borrow Emmett's Jeep."

"Thanks, Bella. My flight lands at eight. See you then?"

"Sure. See you at eight."

I reached and pressed the button to disconnect the call. As soon as the line was dead, Edward dragged one of my knees up onto the desk and clasped both of my hips harshly between his hands while slamming into me powerfully.

"What the fuck was that?" As expected, his voice was rough, not hiding one ounce of his ire.

"I could ask you the same thing," I snapped. His hips punished me, pounding against my ass.

"You're not going out with him."

"Yes," I snarled, "I am."

"You're mine, Bella. You belong to me. I want you underneath me and wrapped around my cock for the rest of the night."

"Too bad."

I was in no mood for his bullshit tonight. His little game had gone on too long and I allowed it to happen. He played on my addiction for him to press me into an uncomfortable situation that I knew better than to participate in. All of this, the office and answering the phone, was a step too far. Now, I was pissed and fed up.

"I'm not asking," Edward replied harshly.

"Neither am I. Get it over with already. I'm done."

"The hell you are," he bit out. I didn't need to see his face to know his jaw was locked tight, the seething words hissing through clenched teeth. "You're going to come all over my cock and fucking thank me for it."

"Fat chance, buddy."

Words evaded Edward as she growled in frustration at my petulance. Pulling free of me, I thought he'd lost the will to continue this absurd episode. Instead, he flipped me over until I was flat on my back and then he hoisted my legs over his shoulders.

"You know you'll come for me," he teased darkly. Edward dragged the head of his rigid cock through my slit and pressed it firmly against my clit. Reflexively, I clenched, but bit back the moan as I glared at him. "Your hot little cunt is swollen and dripping for me, Bella. We both know you want it."

Like hell I was going to admit that to him. Yes, he knew my body better than I did. He didn't need me to say the words and further inflate his ego while playing into his power trip.

"Beg for it," he ordered when I clamped my mouth shut and refused to answer. "Beg me fill that tight pussy."

"Fuck you."

"Good enough." Edward impaled me hard and deep. A sound forced its way past my lips, but I bit down on my lip and forced silence. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

One hand splayed over my belly while his thumb worked vigorously to rub my clit. His hips swiveled and angled expertly to hit the needy spot inside me that begged his attention.

I was pissed and nearly to the point of despising him; that didn't negate that fact that I still loved the infuriating man. I craved Edward, whether I was particularly happy with him or not. My body instigated a mutiny against my mind and bent to his influence. He knew he could have me any way that he demanded. I'd given him permission. We had a long-standing promise that sex would never be withheld as a means of fighting other battles.

Still, I didn't have to be happy about it.

I writhed beneath him, meeting his thrusts with our eyes locked in silent argument. My walls clamped down with the first waves of my building orgasm, gripping his thick cock and pulling him deeper.

"Fuck yes," he grunted. "Come on my cock, Bella. This is mine. I own your perfect cunt, baby."

I did. Beautiful bastard, I came hard and violently around him. Edward bent over me, driving his cock with forceful abandon as our slick bodies slid against one another. I felt Edward pulse inside me as he moaned my name into my shoulder and bit down sharply.

"Take it all," he purred as he spilled warm and went inside me. "Milk every damn drop of my cum."

Before either of us was fully recovered, I shoved Edward off of me, hurriedly dressed, and made my way to the ladies locker room. He didn't chase after me and I welcomed the solitude as I showered and dressed again.

We rode in charged silence back to the house, though I half expected him to kidnap me away to his condo. While I seethed and glared out the window, Edward made no indication of his thoughts. He got what he wanted: he'd gotten his rocks off and now he could suffer the punishment of a night alone to think about what he'd done.

My hand was already on the door handle when he came to an easy stop on the curb. Just before I had one foot on the pavement, Edward laid his hand over mine. I snapped my eyes to his, ready to put him in his place if he so much as muttered an argument.

"I love you," he stated softly. Those weren't the words I expected to hear.

"I love you," I answered sincerely.

Edward released his hand from mine and returned both to the steering wheel. Dismissed, I stepped out of the car and shut the door without an aggressive slam. Emmett's Jeep was in the driveway and the light on the front porch was on, so I stepped into the house and put on a false smile without looking back as Edward drove away.

* * *

**End Notes:** Where have you been, Jake? This should be awkward.


	12. Chapter 12

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience._

**A/N:** Updating LC and Crashed on the same day? Damn, you guys are spoiled. Have a great weekend! Oh, and I know I'm terrible about responding to reviews lately. Sorry about that, but know that I love them and anxiously await hearing from you after every post. If I'm not answering, that just means I'm busy writing the next update. Thank you!

* * *

**Chapter 12**

"You look nervous," Jacob told me as we looked out over the dark water that shimmered under the silver light of the moon. His voice cut into the stillness between us dramatically, though the words were hushed and gentle.

Jacob was reluctant to face the inquisition at Tony's and I was pretty sure Jasper would be there with Garrett and Alice at some point during the night. The likelihood of Edward bursting through the front door in a temper tantrum was another incentive to avoid our usual spot for the night.

After picking Jake up at the airport and lumbering through short pleasantries of "How was your flight?" I took us to the White Street pier. Leaning against the railing, I was too cowardly to look him in the eyes.

I sighed, struggling to find the smallest bit of courage and the slightest hint of what to say to him. I could start with the truth. "I don't know what to say."

"I really wasn't sure you'd agree to see me. I mean, I can understand why you wouldn't want to. But I'm glad you did."

"Me? I can't figure out why you'd even want to share the same air, Jake. What I did…"

"Which was what, exactly?" He turned to lean his hip against the rail and stare intently at my profile.

The full extent of my involvement in the arrests wasn't public knowledge. Officially, my cooperation was mostly redacted from the case entirely. Edward saw to that. Short of putting me in witness protection until after the trials, he did everything necessary to keep my name out of it.

Tanya would be the one taking the stand to give testimony about James' activities and associates. She was the witness that had direct involvement with narcotics and could identify faces and name names. I was just the one who tied James to Paul and pointed the ATF in the right direction.

"I'm the one that sold out Paul, Jared, Sam…all of them." I stopped just short of running my hand through my hair and pinching the bridge of my nose. "I cut a deal to save myself and they went down for it."

"You think I'm mad at your for sending my deadbeat cousin to Jail? Fucker let Mike get away with nearly killing you, Bella. I'm the fucking coward. I should have done something about him a long time ago." Jake pushed off the railing and paced behind me for a moment. I heard his loud footsteps beating a path into the pavement and his louder breathing huffing out of his chest. "Bella," he stopped behind me, "look at me."

There was so much grief and tension in his voice as he said my name. I turned, slowly, and met his eyes. The expression of Jacob's face wasn't one of the many I had prepared myself for. He looked…distraught.

"I wish I could say that I didn't know. I wish I could honestly tell you that it was all a huge shock when the feds busted him, but it wasn't. I suspected for years. I'd seen him do it and they'd offered me all kinds of shit—drugs, jobs, whatever. When I heard what happened to you in Atlantic City—"

"There's no way you could have known what James and Paul were up to. You couldn't have known they were involved." I laughed, humorlessly at my next thought. "Edward had someone digging into James for months, and even they never put Paul and James together."

"That doesn't make it okay," he argued. "For one reason or another, I could have prevented this if I just worked up the balls to stand up to him."

"He's your family, Jake. I was nothing and no one to you. We'd barely met until this year. There are a hundred people on this island who could have said something or done something a long time ago. I'm not going to spend the rest of my life taking out my revenge on everyone. It's over, it's done, and I'm moving on."

I turned back to the water and closed my eyes tight. Too many images were trying to invade my mind and I was determined not to let them overwhelm me. I took several deep breaths, inhaling the warm and comforting scent of the ocean that always grounded and soothed me.

"So am I," he answered softly. Jacob came to rest against the railing next to me. "I just had to get away after all that shit went down. I'm setting a few things in order and then I'm heading back to Nashville."

"What's in Nashville?"

"A gym."

I peered up at him, curious.

"I met a guy a while back at Emmett's place. We worked out together for a while. When he left Florida to move up there and start his own place, he told me to call him if I ever decided I wanted to try a career in fighting. I didn't have anywhere else to go, so I headed up there after the whole thing with Paul started."

"You're going to fight, why?"

"The money is a hell of a lot better than bartending. You know that." There was an accusation is in tone that surprised me.

"Yeah, but do you really want to take punches for a living? You don't have to leave home, Jake. I thought things would be worse after the news got out, but I think everyone has just decided to let it go this time. I can actually go out now without people staring at me. Well, they still stare," I corrected, "but at least people don't have that look of disgust that they used to."

"They're scared shitless," he chuckled halfheartedly and nudged me with his elbow. He didn't have to say anymore. The implication was clear: one girl and two stabbing deaths.

Despite the darkness of Jake's comment, I breathed out short laugh of my own. Fuck. That had to make me a terrible person with one giant bolt loose.

"I just think it's time that I start doing something with my life. I've been training with him for the last five months. I help out around the gym and he's been letting me crash in his spare bedroom. He's working on getting me a tryout."

"What about your dad?" Billy was confined to a wheelchair after losing one leg to diabetes and suffering severe nerve damage in the other. He and Charlie used to be friends, but something had happen many years ago that seemed to have driven a wedge between them. Jake's dad never came to the funeral or the wake.

"I've got it all figured out." Jake turned, putting his back to the railing but keeping his eyes on me. "I saw Paul before I came home."

"What?" The word came out too loudly as I stood up straight.

"He asked me to do him a favor."

"Jacob! I—What—You—"

"Relax, Bella." He put his hand on my shoulder and I ripped myself out of his hold. "I'm not going to lift a finger to help that jackass. Of course not. But I can help Billy. I can make sure he's taken care of so I can leave and move on with my own life. It's only fair."

"Spit it out, Jake." He had a strange look about him and I wasn't sure I liked the air of conspiracy circling him.

"They haven't found the money," he nearly whispered. Jake paused for a long moment while I looked at him for a damn explanation. "Paul's so fucking arrogant, he actually thinks I give a fuck about helping him just because he's my cousin. He knows where James was stashing the money. He asked me to find it and said he'd split it with me if I made sure it got into his account. He's got some public defender, but he thinks he might see the light of day again if he can afford to higher a real attorney. It's a lot of money, Bella."

"You're out of your damn mind," I shouted and spun around to start some angry pacing of my own. It didn't help, so I stopped and glared at Jake. "You have to turn it in. You have to report it. You know they record prison conversations."

"He gave a letter to his lawyer and his lawyer gave it to me," he answered smugly. Like he was so damn clever. Idiot. "They can't read anything passed between an inmate and his attorney."

"Jake," I tried to tamp down my anger at his idiocy to attempt reasoning with him. Suddenly, Jacob looked every bit his age—sheltered and naïve island boy that he was. "Listen to me. You have to go to the police and turn over the letter. I promise that this will come back to haunt you. I don't care how much money Paul said is there—if it even really exists at all—you don't want to go down for this."

"How is anyone going to know?" Jacob balked at my perfectly rational warning. "Paul is going to rot in prison. I can set Billy up with a nurse and whatever he needs. I can take care of his medical bills, his insurance, everything. He'll be looked after and I can move on and start enjoying my life."

"Why are you telling me this?" Because really, why would be mention a word of it to anyone?

Jake softened his expression and took a step toward me. I looked away, feeling the narrow space between us become too intimate. His imposing stature eclipsed me and I could feel the heat radiating from his body.

"Bella," he barely whispered my name. "Please look at me." Jake put one finger under my chin and lifted my face until our eyes met. His features were gentle, kind, and completely opposite from the raving lunatic he'd professed to be just a moment ago. "I owe you so much. I let you down back then and I could have done more. I want to split the money with you. Consider it payment for everything Paul and James put you through. You deserve it."

I moved away from him, totally aghast at his offer. "I don't want the money," I answered him very clearly and leaving no room for misunderstanding. "I don't want it and you shouldn't want anything to do with it either."

"Why are you being so difficult about this? Don't you think you deserve better than wasting the rest of your life in Emmett's gym answering phones? It is a lot of money, Bella. You could go anywhere and do anything you wanted." He moved closer again, this time capturing the side of my face in his hand and leveling his dark eyes with mine. "Or you could come with me. We can put all of this behind us and never look back. I'll take care of you."

I was flabbergasted, stunned, appalled, and dismayed by his absurd offer. At what point in our brief friendship did Jake get the idea that I had any interest in him whatsoever? For that matter, under what inconceivable circumstances would I ditch my brothers for him? If we were drowning on the Titanic, I'd go down with the ship and my two best friends before abandoning them to save myself. I'd die for them, gladly and with a smile, rather than just take off on them.

Again.

That was different. I left to protect them just as much to protect myself. With me out of the country, the heat died off and the detectives left them alone. But I was getting off topic.

For an indeterminate span of time, I stared up at Jacob Black is total disbelief that turned to bubbling frustration. Frankly, I was offended. I'd finally worked out my "go fuck yourself" in my head when he brought his lips down to mine.

I shoved at him immediately, pressing my hands to his solid chest and pushing. He didn't budge. Well, he didn't release my face or my lips. Instead, he wound his other arm around my back and grabbed a handful of my ass while trying to shove his tongue down my throat.

The last time I stabbed a man to death, the act was clear in my mind. It wasn't until after I was able to breathe again that I lost all coherent appreciation of my surroundings and the flurry of movement in that hospital room.

Under Jacob's attack, all I saw was red-hot flames licking at my eyeballs. I opened my lips, captured his bottom lip, and bit down until I tasted blood. Then, just for good measure, I used my well-trained knee to shove his nuts up into his stomach. Yeah, that got him to let go.

I didn't stick around to hurl insults at the whining child rolling on the ground. I ran straight to Emmett's Jeep and tossed Jake's bag onto the pavement of the parking lot. My hands were shaking when I pulled onto A1A and I briefly considered going back to kick him while he was down. Now I just had to decide who I wanted to let castrate him: Emmett and Jasper, or Edward.


	13. Chapter 13

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

**Chapter 13**

I drove through the relatively quiet residential streets of Key West—past subtle clapboard houses and plantation-style mansions decaying with age—for more than an hour as I attempted to convince myself I wasn't deliberately inching my way closer to a destination. I lied to myself and said I hadn't made up my mind where I was headed.

Passing under the orange wash of streetlights at a steady tempo, the alternating illuminated pools and dark shadows between them, steadied my mind to the rhythm. Passing Caroline Street with the canvas down on Emmett's Jeep and the salty night air passing over my exposed skin, I let my mind run blank. My anger had subsided during the drive, which was mostly the point of the exercise. I needed the time alone to process and calm.

At a dark intersection, I paused at the stop sign and proceeded through the empty street. From a driveway on the right, a scruffy dog darted out in front of me. I slammed on the brakes and jerked forward against my seat belt as my heart leapt in surprise. The dog, sort of mangy looking with dark brown fur and eyes that glowed in the reflection of the headlights, stopped just a few feet away. He stared in my direction, refusing to clear my path and continue on his doggy way. I honked, trying to encourage him to pass, but he sunk low on his front paws and growled at me.

I waited patiently for a moment, hoping that he'd just move on and allow me to do the same, but the dog remained determined in his interruption. There were cars parked along the curb on either side of the road, making it impossible to just attempt driving around the stubborn animal. Instead, I hopped out of the Jeep and slowly approached the dog.

At first, he growled a warning and retreated just a step as he assumed a defensive posture. I didn't let that stop me. With my hand held out palm up and advancing very slowly, I approached the frightened animal. Three feet between us, I knelt on the ground and offered my hand. For a moment, the dog only stared at me, but he'd stopped growling. He sniffed at me, keeping a wary eye as he inched closer with his nose. I remained still, allowing him to investigate me. He wore no tags or collar, so was obviously a stray.

He slowly came closer, extending his nose toward me with his head bent. When I felt that he'd relented, I gently ran my fingers behind his ear and scratched at the matted fur. The dog leaned in to my touch and extended his neck to give me better access to where he wanted to be pet. He had, after all, made friends. I smooth my hand down his back several times, placating the animal for a moment. When he stood, I noticed he wasn't putting his full weight on his back leg. There was a bit mark and some blood; evidence that he'd been in a fight with likely another dog.

It was originally my intention to only encourage the animal to vacate the street and allow me to proceed, but I couldn't very well leave the poor thing to suffer and limp its away along in the dark. So, I stood and took a few steps toward the Jeep. The dog perked up, watching me intently.

"Well," I said expectantly, "hop in if you want a ride." I patted my leg twice and nodded toward the Jeep. Immediately, the dog followed and jumped in through the open driver side door. I coaxed him into the back seat and pulled out my cell phone to call Jeannie, a veterinarian and old friend of Charlie's. There was no way I could keep the dog, but she would get him patched up and find him a good home. Unfortunately, my phone was dead. Well, hopefully she wouldn't mind an unannounced visitor

xXx

It was nearly midnight by the time I left Jeannie's house. She'd been rightly surprised to hear from me, and after she took care of Rugby, her chosen name for the dog, she insisted that I stay a bit to share a few cups of coffee. Thankfully, she was polite enough not to ask about uncomfortable topics. Instead, we mostly discussed her clinic and work at Emmett's gym.

As I waved goodbye and backed out of her driveway, I worried over the numerous missed calls and text messages Edward might have sent while looking for me. He'd dropped me off at the house, knowing I was going to meet another guy against his wishes, more than six hours ago. By now he must have called Jasper and Emmett and had probably put out a BOLO. I was in for a world of hurt.

Practically, we needed to have it out tonight. Tomorrow morning we were all boarding a flight for Charlotte. Delaying a discussion about what happened at the gym this evening would only further distract Edward from his fight and make for a very uncomfortable weekend for all of us. As the lesser to two evils, we were going to have a very late night with little sleep.

Fifteen minutes later, I stepped off the elevator to the penthouse floor and stood outside the double doors as I gathered up my courage. More than anything, I wanted an explanation for Edward's odd behavior. He needed to give me some justification for the peculiar shift in his mood. Using my key, I unlocked the door and stepped inside the apartment. I was met with a darkened room, illuminated only by the moonlight washing in through the tall windows of the living room.

I expected Edward to be sitting on the couch waiting up for me or maybe pacing compulsively for the moment I walked through the doors. I scanned to the right toward the master bedroom and then the left down the hallway to his office and music room. Faintly, I heard the melody spilling from the piano. It was muffled and quiet through the thick walls and closed door, but I followed the tune down the hallway.

Without knocking, I stepped through the threshold. Edward was shirtless in the same jeans he wore when we left the gym. He was slumped over the keys, his head down and eyes closed as he played a dark tune in minor chords. He didn't possess the usual grace and perfect posture I was accustomed to seeing. The reason sat on top of his discarded shirt, which lay over the closed lid of the piano. A bottle of whisky—half empty.

If he noticed my entrance, he didn't acknowledge the intrusion. Without pause, his fingers continued to meander over the instrument. Despite what I guessed to he his inebriated state, Edward's talent was sure and effortless. For a long moment, I simply watched the way the muscles in his back flexed as he played.

"What time is it?" Edward asked softly without halting the melody. His voice was hoarse.

"Saturday," I replied.

"You're off the hook," he answered without looking at me. "You want a drink?"

At past midnight, it was officially the end of my 30-day detox. I had expected to put myself to bed with a celebratory glass of wine tonight. I had proven—albeit unnecessarily—that I was not dependent on alcohol as a crutch. Really, I had only agreed to the bargain because Edward needed the reassurance that I wasn't spinning out of control in the same direction his parents had devolved. Earlier in the day, I envisioned Edward and I sharing dinner and then curling up in bed to read before our early morning of travel tomorrow. Or today. Whatever. Now, I just wasn't in the mood. Besides, I'd never acquired a taste for his drink of choice.

"Was that bottle full when you opened it?"

Edward took his fingers from the keys and reached for the bottle. He tilted it to the side, seemingly considering its amber contents, and then let it rest again on its cotton coaster.

"I hope so," he replied with a hint of humor. "I'd hate to find out I paid full price for less than full volume."

Yeah, he was drunk. And this new development would only make the conversation more difficult.

"Edward—"

"Did you have fun?" Edward tilted his head to look at me. Heavy lids shielded half his eyes and his hair was more unruly that normal. I could nearly picture the hours he'd spent roughly tugging at the roots.

"No," I answered without inflection. "Actually, I've had a horrid evening." I stepped further into the room and then sank back to lean against the interior wall with my arms crossed over my chest and one foot propped up behind me. "And for the next several minutes, I don't see it getting much better."

What right did Edward have to be sulking at his piano with moody tunes and several ounces of whisky flowing through his veins? I was the one who'd been manhandled and groped for the better part of the night by two men I barely recognized. He had some damn nerve, which reignited my ire.

Edward seemed to ponder my statement for a bit. That, or he just couldn't form a coherent response. I'd never seen him drunk, so this would be interesting.

The seconds ticked by in silence, and I was getting impatient. Though I didn't have a great idea of how to start the discussion, I wasn't inclined to drag it out any longer than necessary. I was prepared to just blurt it all out when his phone buzzed and skittered across the lid of the piano. Edward turned to watch the device vibrate, not lifting a finger to answer it, until it finally stopped trying to leap to the floor.

"I'm avoiding Alice," he informed me quietly. "She calls exactly every seven minutes. Seven," he repeated as he shifted his eyes back to mine. "That's a strange number, right? Like alarms that snooze for nine minutes. Ten would seem the logical period. But no, it's nine."

"Edward, you're rambling."

"Move in with me." He leveled his sincere gaze at me with a hopeful expression.

I rolled my eyes, looking away from him. Was this his way of purposefully avoiding the pertinent topic at hand? Because I really had no patience for such things tonight. Even if he were too drunk to remember our conversation in the morning, I'd drag an explanation out of him just the same.

"Move in with me," he repeated with a touch of pleading in his tone. It wasn't a typical Cullen command—one that he and his sister were skilled in delivering. No, he was holding out an invitation and really wanted an answer this time. I was not, however, prepared to give Edward the answer he wanted.

"We need to talk," I replied with authority. "You need to tell me what the hell happened tonight."

"I came home, sold my hotels, opened this bottle, and have been playing in here since then." Edward kept a straight face and spoke succinctly as though he were describing the steps involved in making a PB&J. To that, I was taken aback and shook from my stern demeanor.

"You sold your hotels in the last six hours?"

"Yes."

"Just like that? Pick up the phone and done?"

"I sent an email," he replied flatly.

"Before you started drinking?"

"Yes."

"Okay," I pushed off from the wall and ran my damned trained hand through my hair. "Now I'm concerned. You're not making a damn lick of sense and you look like hell. What's going on?"

"I'm not in business with Tanya anymore." The vacancy in his eyes was unnerving, though he didn't appear to have any trouble focusing on me. "I've also got a buyer for the boat. I proposed selling the house, but Alice yelled at me."

"Edward," I replied in surprise peppered with utter confusion, "what the hell happened? You're selling Elizabeth?"

"It's just a boat, Bella. Its just money."

"Then why now?" I took a step closer, bearing down on him. "If it means so little to you, why sell it now when you couldn't bring yourself to let it go a few years ago?"

"Why won't you move in with me?" Edward's devastatingly beautiful eyes were bloodshot and tired, but still so lovely when they held such a needy question behind them. He sat forward, facing me, and placed his elbows on his knees. "Give me a reason."

I didn't really have one other than not wanting to disrupt the careful balance of our relationship. Everything worked just fine the way it was. Well, what counted as fine for us. He had his space and I had mine. We weren't obligated or beholden to each other. We spent every night together because we chose to, not because either of us lacked another option. And, in all honesty, I wouldn't have to scramble if our relationship went pear-shaped.

I wasn't betting against us by any means. I'd given up the notion that the rug would be pulled out from under me when Edward got a wild hair to take off or simply decided he didn't want me anymore. Of that one insecurity, I was cured. However, Jasper and Alice had been dating a lot longer than us and they weren't picking out curtains together.

Okay, bad example. Alice had picked out the curtains in the house. Still, the point was the same. They were absolutely in love and not in a rush to cohabitate. So why should Edward and I set the precedent? We'd only been together a few months. That wasn't enough time, right?

"You're deflecting," I deflected. So much for fairness. "You need to explain your behavior in Emmett's office. Honestly, Edward, I don't like that side of you. That crossed a line."

"I know," he answered as he let his fall to stare at the floor. "I acted reprehensibly and I'm sorry. An apology isn't sufficient, but I am sorry."

His phone buzzed again and then tumbled right off the edge of the piano to clatter against the hardwood floor. Uninjured, it continued to buzz while Edward dutifully ignored it.

"Seven minutes," he muttered. "I'm surprised she hasn't called you."

"My phone's dead." Had he thought I'd been ignoring him all night? I guess it was a reasonable assumption.

"That explains it," he nodded. "She'll show up here within the hour. I've never been able to dodge her for very long. That's part of the reason why I avoided living in the same state for so long."

"Why are you avoiding her?" If Alice was hounding him so adamantly, it had to be important. More concerning was that Edward was hiding from her with a bottle of liquor and sad music. And then it just sort of clicked.

"Edward, look at me."

He raised his head just enough to look up from under his lashes. His eyes were bloodshot, but not from drinking. They were puffy and rubbed raw around the edges. He had new bruises on his knuckles that I knew weren't there when we left the gym. He'd been crying and had likely broken another decorative knickknack in that dark living room. Throwing things could have been attributed to my disappearance, but not tears. My chest tightened at the thought of what could have made Edward Cullen cry.

"Baby," I moved toward him until I held his face between my hands. "What happened?"

"Please move in with me," he begged softly. "I need you here, angel." Edward wrapped his arms around my back and pressed his face to my chest while clutching me tightly. He took several deep breaths, which only exaggerated the subtle tremble running through is muscles. "Please, love. I need this."

Edward's phone vibrated on the floor, making his body tense. "She's getting impatient."

I pulled back, but Edward tightened his hold on me. "I'm going to answer it," I told him definitively. Rather than expend the energy arguing, Edward released all but my hand and allowed me the space to bend down and pick up the phone.

"Alice?"

"Bella." Alice sounded frantic, even in just those two syllables. "I've been trying to call you for hours. Jasper went out looking for you."

"I just got to the condo a few minutes ago. My phone died." I looked down at Edward, but he wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Is he still drunk?" She was livid, and I guess that was justifiable. It was, however, unusual when directed at her brother.

"Alice, tell me what's going on. He won't talk to me."

There was a long pause. I heard Jasper's muffled voice in the background and it sounded like they were in a car.

"Carlisle called me," she answered sorrowfully. I knew the answer before she spoke, but maybe I was holding out hope that I was wrong. "Our mom committed suicide." Her voice broke on the last word and then I heard shuffling on the other end. Edward stood, taking the bottle with him as he stalked out of the room. I knew I should go after him, but my feet were cemented to the floor.

"Bella." Jasper had taken over the phone and I heard Alice crying in the background.

"Yeah, I'm here."

"How is he?"

"Not so good." That was an understatement, but considering the situation, it could have been worse. "How long ago?"

"Carlisle said he called Edward just after we finished up at the gym. Edward called Alice a few hours ago to tell her and then she called her uncle. I guess Edward wasn't making much sense."

"You've got to tell Emmett to cancel the fight. We've got to pull Edward out of it."

"No," Edward snapped from the doorway. "I'm not backing out."

"We need to go to Boston," I argued. His glare intensified as he stared me down unflinchingly. "Edward, you have to be with your family."

"Carlisle can handle it without me," he replied coldly. "I'll cut a check for the expenses."

"You don't even want to go to the funeral?"

"Why should I?" He cocked his eyebrow and slid on that heartless mask of impenetrability. "She wasn't my mother. I barely knew her."

"Jasper." On the other end of the phone, I didn't know what possible use he could be to me now. It wasn't as if he'd have any more influence over Edward. "What does Alice want to do?"

"Emmett can't cancel the fight without Edward's consent. Truthfully, Alice doesn't want to go to the funeral without him."

Despite the unaffected façade Edward was trying to portray, I knew he was distraught. Whatever his anger toward his parents, he was clearly breaking inside. I needed to know how to proceed, and only Alice could point me in the right direction. He wouldn't kick me out or slam doors in my face, so I would have to be her surrogate.

"Can I talk to her?"

"Yeah, here."

A moment later, Alice sniffled into the phone and I heard her take in a deep breath. "Hey," she answered.

"What do you need?"

"I'm not going to try and force him to go to the funeral. She let our father abuse him for most of his life and never once tried to stop it. I lost all sympathy for her a long time ago. I'm only worried about my brother. I know he isn't taking his well. I want to be there for Carlisle and Esme, but I won't abandon Edward."

"Okay," I answered on a deep sigh. "I'll talk to him. Where are you guys going?"

"Back to the house. If you're there, I'll just stay with Jasper tonight."

"Yeah, I'm staying. Call if you need anything and I'll call you first thing in the morning."

"Thank you, Bella." Alice hung up, leaving me with a phone in my hand and a angry man silently daring me to give it my best shot.

"I don't owe her anything," Edward stated darkly, unmistakably referring to his mother.

"No, you don't."

Elizabeth was nothing to me. Nothing, except the woman who'd sacrificed a child to a complete monster. From all accounts, she was a terrible mother with very little interest in either of her children. If Alice felt no love lost, then I certainly wouldn't begrudge Edward his very justifiable attitude.

I crossed the room to pass Edward in the doorway and took his hand in mine, entwining our fingers. "Come to bed," I ordered gently. When I moved away, he paused before letting me pull him along behind me.

Coming at Edward head-on was not the right tactic for this situation. I had to respect his feelings, but I also recognized that he felt a deeper loss than he was willing to admit aloud—even to me. He was, after all, an orphan at twenty-five. Maybe he never really felt that he had parents, but now they were both irrevocably erased from his life. I knew that feeling. Wherever Renee was, she'd been dead to me for a long time.

No, rather than argue a losing battle with Edward, I'd just be here for him and support his decision. If he decided to go to Boston to comfort his aunt and uncle, then I'd be at his side. If he wanted to get in the cage in two days and beat the shit out of someone who asked for it, I'd sit in the front row and watch him do it. And if he wanted to hole up in our bedroom for the next six months and just ignore the rest of the world, I'd disappear with him. He deserved that much and a great deal more.


	14. Chapter 14

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N:** Did I upset you guys? Not many reviews this time around. Hope this makes it all better…a little. Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 14**

In somber quiet, Edward and I went about our nightly routines in the bathroom. Except when it was necessary to use both hands, I kept my fingers entwined with his while we brushed our teeth and the like, giving him the physical contact and reassurance he needed. I kept my eyes trained on his reflection in the mirror, watching for the signs of what turmoil was ravaging him behind the implacable expression he wore. Where moments ago Edward had been evasively playful, sweetly tender, distraught and impassively angry, he was now only silent.

The fire had gone out of his eyes. Their green depths were as pale and vacant as his face. The sight made me angry, violently and furiously angry with the persons responsible for extinguishing the brilliant light and magnificent power that I'd always seen in Edward. He was emotionally stripped and raw, though I could only guess at the true complexity of his feelings at this moment.

When we finished in the bathroom, I led him by the hand back to his dark bedroom. He needed to hide out in the dark for the time, and so I let him. At the edge of the bed, I sat him down and gently kissed his lips. He didn't reach for me, but I suspected he had either lost the energy or simply the will to seek any further comfort from me.

Keeping my eyes locked with his, I slid my T-shirt over my head, discarded my bra to the floor, and slipped out of my jeans and underwear. Edward stared back at me blankly as I knelt before him and unfastened his pants. I tugged, indicating my intent, and he lifted his hips to allow me to pull his clothes free of his legs.

"Lie down, baby. On your stomach." Reassuringly, I ran my fingers through his hair, avoiding his scar, and kissed him again.

Once he was situated in the middle of the bed with his face titled to one side and his arms limp beside him, I crawled over to straddle his upper thighs. I started with his neck, firmly stroking and massaging the taut muscles that held so much tension. Taking my time as I went, I moved to his shoulders and then his upper back. Methodically, I kneaded the tissue and applied pressure to the bunched knots binding him tight.

For several long minutes, I worked my way reverently over Edward's flawless body. His skin was soft and warm under my touch, hard with toned muscles and yet so tender with a lifetime of pain. Even as my fingers cramped and my shoulders ached, I carried on with my task of rubbing his legs all the way to the soles of his feet and then each arm to his fingertips. When I'd massaged every inch of him, I decided I needed the silent nurturing as much as he did.

Edward and I would get to the bottom of his earlier behavior at the gym, but I also had to repent for my unwitting sin. I'd left him, alone and grieving, to see Jake. A guy I'd barely started to form a friendship with had called out of the blue. And because I was mad at him, I ditched Edward to go running at the drop of a hat. I should have realized there was something wrong when he walked in the office. I should have asked or said something in the moment. I knew better than to believe that was anything close to normal. But I didn't comfort him and I didn't dig.

Where my hands had partially relaxed his muscles, my lips began to caress. I started at his neck again, lightly pressing kisses to every inch of him that I could reach. Edward didn't utter a single sound or even twitch as I traveled over his flesh, but his breathing became slow and steady with the rise and fall of his back under my body.

This was an act of love and devotion. Whatever our problems, he needed me tonight and for as long as it took for Edward to overcome the pain. I'd acted out against him numerous times: in anger, in fear, in jealously. I was not innocent or beyond reproach by any means. We were both flawed and damaged, but always loyal and unwavering in our bond. And so I loved every perfect plane of the man spread out before me, soothing him with my lips.

When I finally pressed a last kiss to the inside of his palm, Edward rolled over to his back and looked up at me. The hurt in his eyes triggered a sting in my own, but I bit my trembling lip at the uninhibited adoration in his expression.

"I want the fight," he stated flatly. It was the last ounce of defiance he had left in him for the night. The last measure of weary will he was able to muster.

"Okay," I replied softly, almost dismissively. Saturday he could fight, tonight I had other intentions.

I straddled his hips and leaned forward to kiss the sensitive skin under Edward's jaw. His breath rushed just a little and I felt his fingers twitch against my calves. Encouraging him, I took his hands and placed them on my ribs. He held me delicately as first, but as I trailed lips and tongue down his neck, nibbling teasingly at the flesh, his grip tightened.

Sliding down his body to pay his chest the same attentions I'd afforded the rest of him, Edward's hand grazed higher until he cupped both of my breasts. My tongue traveled to his stomach and his fingers squeezed while the pads of his thumbs swept enticingly over both of my nipples.

I may not have had any great wisdom or insight as how to fix Edward, but I knew I could placate him for a little while. He'd come to me, wanting to claim my body, after Carlisle had first told him the news. Edward didn't get back in the cage or go two more rounds with the punching bag. He came to me to bury his pain in our passion. I just didn't have the slightest clue what he was seeking at the time. Now, I understood and I could give him that much.

He was hard and almost panting as I sucked the flesh of his pelvic muscle with enough force to leave a mark. He'd see it tomorrow—brooding in the mirror and having all manner of masochistic thoughts in the morning—and be reminded that I was here for him, that I loved him. A rough hiss pushed past his lips when I released him and his hips rose off the bed slightly to chase me. I wouldn't make him wait or beg. This was already his. Anything and everything he needed from me was his without asking.

Slowly, I wrapped my fingers around the silky skin of his erection and stroked him up and down, palming the tip and rotating my hand around his shaft. I watched him from my hunched position between his legs. Edward's eyes were hooded and shadowed in the darkness, his jaw tight.

"Angel." Edward breathed out the single word in a deep and hoarse tone. The strain I'd so meticulously worked to relieve was mounting again.

"Should I stop?"

"No," he answered quickly, but he looked ashamed by his response.

"The office was not okay," I told him honestly but softly. This wasn't a fight or some sadistic form of punishment, just a statement of fact. "You used me in anger. You lied by omission, Edward. That's rule number one."

"I'm so sorry, Bella. Sincerely. I'm disgusted with myself."

"You're forgiven, and I don't want your self-flagellation. I want you to be open with me. If you need something, you tell me. Whatever it is, you can have it if you just trust me to help you." Edward nodded his head once in agreement. "I love you, Edward. And I'm going to take care of you, too."

The role reversal to this entire situation was glaringly apparent. In many ways, I'd sexually used Edward for much of our early days together. It had taken his considerable patience and understanding to break me of my habits where sex was concerned. He'd also begged and threatened me to get compliance that I let him care for and dote on me. He'd almost always been the one on top and the one comforting me. Tonight, I could start to repay the kindness.

Keeping my eyes with his, I lowered my lips to lick the tip of his cock and then gingerly suck the wide head into my mouth. Edward tensed under me and then went completely limp. I felt the sheets tug from under me, his fingers fisting the helpless cotton at his sides.

"I need your hands, baby." I repeated his words back to him.

Edward complied immediately, tenderly running his fingers through my hair to barely cradle my head between his palms and hold back the length of my hair from falling over my eyes. I licked the bead of cum from his slit and felt the shudder run through his body and into mine. Slowly, I ran the tip of my tongue from the base of his cock to the head, tracing the thick vein and tasting him. Finally, I took him fully into my mouth and sucked in one hard pull as I slid my lips back. Edward moaned, exciting me, and I began to work him diligently. My ministrations were slow and deliberate, stoking him rather than rushing him to climax.

It wasn't long before I felt Edward's thighs tense, his balls tighten, and his cock twitch in my mouth. He would come soon and sharply, but not in my mouth. In one lithe movement, I raised myself to straddle Edward's hips and sink onto him. He groaned harshly and gripped my hips once he was fully seated inside me. My sex clenched around him, milking his thick length and trying to draw him impossibly deeper.

"Bella—"

"I know, baby. This isn't for me."

I placed my hands on his chest and rose languidly on my keys before sliding back down his rigid length. Edward wouldn't last and I didn't want him to expend the energy or concentration in hurrying to make me come before he did. Like this, he wasn't taking; I was offering.

Edward's soft moans came with greater frequency as I rode him at an easy pace. His warm, tender hands ran up and down my body, kneading my breasts and smoothing the sensitive flesh of my stomach. Despite my assurance that it wasn't necessary, he splayed one hand over my pelvis to circle his thumb with precision over my clit. The sensation was warm heat and decadent pleasure, but as I rolled my hips against his, Edward grunted and exploded inside me, spilling in hot streams.

Satisfied, Edward wrapped his arms around my back to crush me to his chest. We kissed deeply, our tongues stroking and mingling fervently.

"Bella," Edward whispered against my lips. "I love you, angel. Please don't hate me."

"I couldn't if I wanted to," I replied genuinely. "Whatever this is," I raised myself above him just enough to meet his eyes, "I want to feel it with you. You've seen my scars and you've held me through all of the pain. I don't want to be anywhere else but beside you."

Edward tucked my head under his chin and kissed my hair while his hands caressed my back and gently traced my scar. Still buried inside me, he held me close until his breathing returned to normal and his heartbeat slowed. He was warm, encompassing me inside and out.

After several long minutes of silence, Edward took a deep breath and held it. His fingers flexed against my back before he blew the hair out over my hair. "I wished her dead so many times," he stated darkly. I held silent, knowing he'd continue when he was ready. It may have been a full minute before he spoke again.

"I rarely went to the hospital after my father had finished with me. I'd wash the blood down the sink, tape myself up, and even did a few of my own stitches before Alice took over the needle and thread. Only when he actually broke a bone would I go to…" he paused. "Her."

Not his mother anymore. No use for the pretense any longer. Not Elizabeth; he'd unloaded the last symbol of that name. She was just a memory of a pathetic woman now.

"I loathed her every minute she flashed that sickeningly polite smile at the doctors. By the time I was sixteen, I would just drive back to school with a broken arm or cracked ribs and have my coach take me get fixed up. She knew better than to ever take me to Carlisle, and I couldn't stand to face him."

"Why not?" I was breaking into his moment, but I hadn't ever stopped to wonder what, if anything, his uncle knew. I knew he loved the Cullens, so surely they were not aware of the abuse at the time.

"He'd have asked the same question everyone does when an abuse victim doesn't come forward. Truth is I'm not entirely sure why I never told anyone. When I was a child, I guess I was too scared or just stupid. I thought Alice would be taken away from me. In hindsight, Carlisle and Esme would have adopted us. But at the time, I feared we'd be separated. She was my responsibility. I couldn't let the state ship her off to some other family."

"And when you were older?" I gently skimmed my fingertips through is hair and down his jaw in a repetitive pattern as he tilted his head into my palm.

"I think I was working my way up to the inevitable." Edward's voice was deadly calm and full of darkness in its low volume. "I knew I could protect Alice. And even though I hated her, I believed I was protecting her mother. I detested the woman. She didn't have to love me, but she barely noticed her own daughter. Yes, I wanted a mom. I wanted everything a mother was supposed to be, but she wasn't it. Not even to Alice, and that just pissed me off. Nevertheless, I'd be damned if I'd let my father do to a woman what he'd done to me. I could take it, not her."

Edward huffed out a breath and squeezed me tighter. "Turns out, of course, that I was still woefully naïve, even as an adult. She'd been suffering his hand for years behind that plastic smile and pain pills. She just hid it better. Maybe that was her strength, but I think she'd gone numb a long time ago."

"You knew you'd kill him." That was the "inevitable" part. Before Edward knew the full extent of my past and saw a dead man's blood on my hands and dripping from my knife—one he'd placed right where I needed it—I would never have spoken in such a cavalier manner about murder. It was, however, the unfortunate reality of our lives.

"Yes," he answered with conviction. "I didn't spend time considering how or when. Like I said, it was building to an inevitable conclusion. Either he'd push me too far one day and I'd finally fight back, or I'd turn into my father's son. Either way, I knew it was coming. If only subconsciously. I let it go on long enough to give me a motive and opportunity."

"And now that she's dead…" Edward tensed under me and I felt a slight shudder run through is muscles. "You feel like you failed."

"I failed a long time ago," he replied with practiced self-deprecation.

"But she was alive and he couldn't hurt her anymore. I think you wanted to believe that eventually she'd come around and at least stop looking at you as his son. As him."

"She stopped looking at me, period."

He was arguing, which meant I was hitting a nerve. My intention wasn't to upset him, but to pull back the layers of his armor and expose his pain. I needed to see and understand it if I had any hope of helping him in any meaningful way.

"She owed you her life, Edward. You suffered all of yours for a woman you had no obligation or duty to. She didn't deserve your chivalry or protection, but you gave it to her anyway."

"Bella." The gruff command was back. Hell, I'd take that over the sad emptiness. Fire was good. Anger was good. He had every right to be livid.

"You should be furious." I sat up and leveled my stern glare with his narrowed eyes. Combative was good. I could work with that. "She couldn't get her fingers out of the pill bottle long enough to protect a child, Edward. You were a child. I hate her. She disgusts me. I'm glad she's dead and so are you."

"Stop it," he seethed harshly.

I hated to do this to him. I truly and honestly didn't like what I was subjecting him to. I did, however, understand a few things about the cathartic power of anger and the violent release of that aggression.

"You didn't have a mother because your father wouldn't acknowledge a mistress. You didn't have a mother because the woman he married was a useless shell of a person. The only good thing she ever did was giving you Alice."

"And I fucking loved her for it," he shouted painfully. His hands tugged sharply at his hair while his face contorted in agony. "Alice is the goddamn spitting image of her. My sister was everything to me during those years. I hated my father and I hated his wife, but the fucker and his soulless bitch made the best fucking friend I've ever had. I hate her because she did everything wrong. I hate her for being weak and giving up. I hate her for not loving my sister. And I'm glad she's dead because she fucking deserved it."

"I know, baby." I slid off of him and cradled Edward's face against my chest while he shook. No tears soaked my skin as he silently sobbed. Edward had two decades of conflicted emotions colliding inside of him, and tonight was the catalyst to finally shatter the façade he'd so skillfully held in place all this time. "I know. It's okay."

Edward held me in a death grip around my back. I didn't say any more. And when he rolled us over until his body covered mine, I kissed him deeply before nodding my head in agreement. Whatever he needed. Whatever he wanted of me, he could have it.

Taking my hands in each of his, he entwined our fingers and slid our arms above my head. With his knees, Edward pried my legs apart and easily positioned himself at my entrance. He still wasn't fully hard, only the remnant of mild arousal evident from the contact of our naked bodies. I could help him.

"Please fuck me, Edward. Hard. I want you to feel only me. I want to make you come, baby."

With a deep groan that became muffled as he bit into my neck, Edward thrust inside me. Together, we were lost in only each other. The rest of the world could go right on ahead and fuck itself.


	15. Chapter 15

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

"He's asking for you," Jasper informed me with a sympathetic expression. He and Emmett, along with Garrett, stood in the hallway outside of Edward's dressing and warm-up room.

Actually, it was a communal room he shared with three other fighters. Across the hall, the three opponents were similarly enclosed as all waited for their turn in the cage. Because Edward was only an undercard fight at this event, he wasn't afforded any of the special treatment we'd experienced in Atlantic City.

Sine arriving in Charlotte, Edward had been typically quiet and reserved. All traces of aggression had been suppressed through the brief press conference he was obliged to attend with the other competitors, as well as the official weigh-in yesterday afternoon. Through all of it, however, he hadn't retreated from me. Quite the opposite, Edward had clung to be fiercely, even if he said very little.

The quite storm brewing inside him was not fear or a lack of focus, but a concentrated anger the ruthlessness he so ardently wished to unleash in the cage. Edward was primed to make another man bleed. Better, at least, that he had a willing participant. If his opponent was not a praying man, I mused, perhaps now would be a good time to start.

"Alice is still in the VIP lounge," I answered Jasper. Originally, she had no intention of attending tonight's fight. It wasn't until we'd arrived at the house to pick up the guys on our way to the airport that Alice announced she was coming along. Edward didn't argue, and we'd given them some time to talk in private while I assured my skeptical brothers that we were not sending Edward out to be slaughtered in the cage.

Alice was not fond of the idea of Edward subjecting himself to another fighter's brutality, but she'd reasoned that she preferred to be here than sitting at home worrying over him. However, I thought it best that I keep her otherwise distracted in the VIP longue with the sponsors, bigwigs, and other wives and girlfriends rather than allow her nerves to flare further while watching other fighters knock each other around. When Jasper phoned to summon me to the dressing rooms, she assured me she'd be fine along for a few minutes.

There was a flurry of movement around us, with event staff parading back and forth through the wide hallway that lead into the stadium at one end and the backstage tunnels at the other.

"If he's not ready," Jasper warned, "you think he has even a second of hesitation, you have to tell me. I'll pull him from the fight. I don't care what he says," Jasper stated emphatically, "I'm not letting him get in there just to take a beating."

"I know," I assured him. Jasper had come a long way with his attitude toward Edward. Part of that may have been for my benefit, partly for Alice, but also I believed Jasper identified with Edward more than he was willing to admit. Nevertheless, he wouldn't allow his fighter to face an opponent if he didn't have his head on straight. "He's needs this," I told him. "He wants it. He's too determined to lose. He doesn't know how."

Jasper nodded, still unsure but hoping for the best. Emmett wrapped his arm around my shoulder, squeezing me in a quick hug before sending me in the room. It was a large space; a work out mat was spread in the center of the floor surrounded by benches. Other fighters and their coaches stretched, shadow boxed, and generally mingled. Alone, Edward sat in the corner staring blankly at the wall. He was still dressed in his sweats with his hands taped and begging to hit something. His expression was one of cold calculation and violent intent. He was ready. No doubt about it.

As I approached, Edward lifted his eyes to mine. There was a moment of pain behind his eyes, but it quickly flickered away as he slid the mask back into place.

"Hey," I greeted him casually. "If you called me in for some fluffing and playtime, I think we have too large an audience." I smiled teasingly, hoping I was helping by keeping the conversation light.

"You want me to clear the room? I'd be happy to." Edward pulled me down to his lap, not the least bit concerned for anyone else. Thankfully, the other fighters were too consumed in their own activities to really take notice of me. After all, they had two fists waiting to meet their faces as well.

I smiled to his offer, running my hand through his hair and scratching my nails through the stubble on his jaw. "Why don't you tell me the purpose of my visit," I insisted. "Not that I'm complaining."

"Boredom?" He smiled crookedly, though the expression lacked some of the usual sly brightness. Edward wasn't quite himself yet, and it would take considerably more time to put the heavy matter of Elizabeth's death to rest. Until after the fight, we'd all silently agreed not to bring up the funeral. Carlisle was seeing to the arrangements and Edward had, as promised, had money wired to the Cullen's account.

"Well, I'm happy to entertain you, if that's all it is, but Emmett is better at telling jokes than I am."

"So you're not buying my excuse?"

"Not really."

"How's Alice?" His brow furrowed, as if he were disappointed in himself for asking the question.

"Nervous, obviously. She's worried about you. I've done all I can to reassure her that you'll be fine, but you know she is."

"I won't drag it out," he promised. "I know that Robert wants me to put on a show. He's leveraging that contract over my head as though it was an incentive, but really he has every intention of retaining me for the league. I'm not going to make it a fifteen-minute bloodbath just to feed beer sales. I don't have the patience for it tonight."

"Are you sure you still want to do this?" I would have figured he'd want to draw out the fight as long as he could keep his opponent conscious—drain every once of cathartic relief from unleashing his aggression.

"Positive," he answered quickly. "I'll give them a knockout for the highlight reel. Same difference."

"Then what's wrong?"

Edward squeezed me tighter, constricting around me as he laid his head on my shoulder and kissed my neck softly. "I'm a little horny. I might still be a little hungover. I'm a lot starving." Yesterday morning Edward slept on the plane and couldn't keep any food down. Whatever he'd managed to eat today apparently hadn't fixed the problem. "And I just can't seem to muster up my usual intent to inflict damage."

"Edward," I scolded in a harsh whisper. "You can't get in that cage. Either you go in there with the singular focus to annihilate that guy or you say you pulled a damn muscle and back out."

"I've fought with broken bones," he answered drily, "I'm not backing out with an excuse like that. I don't want to back out."

"You want to go a few practice rounds with me? I'll give you a real excuse." I meant it, too. I'd rather kick his ass up and down this dressing room than let him stand in front of a real fighter without the will to be brutally violent. Hit or be hit.

Edward chuckled softly against my next, petting my—fucking petting me—on top of my head. "I love you," he replied in amusement.

"Watching it, Cullen. You're pissing me off. Jasper's sitting out there right now waiting for me to say the word. Emmett will knock you unconscious if he has to."

"You wouldn't dare," he accused, but still with a tone of humor.

"Try me, Buster. I'll usurp you all day long if it means keep you out of the hospital."

"You're adorable when you're angry."

Seriously, where the hell did all of this good humor come from? What the hell was wrong with him? I pulled back, scowling at his vibrant eyes. "Are you drunk? Did Garrett give you happy pills or something?"

"No," he kissed lightly against my neck again, running his hand up and down my spine. "Having you in my arms just makes me happy."

"Well snap out of it," I ordered. I jumped out of his lap and stood defiantly with my arms crossed over my chest. "Get angry. Or focused. Or coldly detached. Whatever it is you usually do. I want a fighter, not a lover." Well, for the next hour or so. Then I'd take him to bed and play role reversal again.

"I've got a pretty good idea of exactly what you need," he stated predatorily.

"Jake kissed me," I blurted out. In hindsight, that was not wise. However, in the moment, it was the first incendiary thing that popped into my head. For better or worse, I couldn't let Edward risk his safety in that cage unless I was sure he would win. I'd fall apart if I had to follow him into a hospital room. It happened quite often in his profession.

"What the fuck did you just say?" Edward grouned the words out through clenched teeth. His featured went rigid and his entire body tensed to spring. Well, mission accomplished.

"The other night when I went to see him," I stuttered the words hurridly. "He umm…kissed me." I had a brief memory of the incident, which sparked my temper anew. "Actually, he groped me and tried to jam his tongue down my throat. I shove my knee in his groin and got the fuck out of there."

"And you waited until now to tell me? What the fuck, Bella?" Edward jumped to his feet, towering over me with his fists balled at his sides and his body vibrating in rage. "I'm going to hunt him down," he seethed. "You know what? I'm glad you didn't plant your knife in his kidney. I'm going to enjoy beating the life out of his one hit at a time."

"Whoa," Emmett was suddenly standing between us, actually restraining Edward. I guess to anyone else, I looked to be an inch from having a very bad night. I knew better. "What's going on?"

I mostly ignored him as Jasper took up rank on my side. Garrett looked somewhat amused standing off to the other side.

"He's probably long gone," I answered to Edward as though we hadn't been interrupted. "He came back, said his peace, and has likely crawled back under the rock from whence he came."

"Who's crawling?" Emmett released Edward when he was certain we weren't about to come to blows.

"Jake," Edward snarled. "He—" Edward abruptly turned and launched his fist at the wall. At that, everyone in the room paused to stare. Edward didn't even wince.

"Bella?" Jasper turned his accusatory stare to me. "You saw him? He was home?"

Oh, right. I'd forgotten to mention that part to my brothers. In my defense, we'd had much larger problems by the end of that night.

"He called me Friday night from Miami and said he was catching a flight home. I picked him up, we talked, he wanted to play tonsil hockey, and I shoved my boot up his ass," figuratively speaking.

"Where is he now?" Jasper looked just as violently angry as Edward, shooting glances toward Emmett.

"Hey," I clapped my hands in frustration, "you all need to focus. Forget about Jake. He's an asshat and I'm sure he's scared shitless that the three of you will meet in him a darkly alley."

"He should be," Emmett growled. I rolled my eyes.

I turned my attention back to Edward. He was the priority. "Are you angry now?"

"Doesn't even begin to cover it," he snarled darkly. Those piercing and intimidating eyes were vivid with fire. Good.

"Do you want to go beat the hell out of someone?" He didn't respond, only narrowing his gaze in challenge. "Then my work here is done." I rose up on my toes and kissed him hard, smacking him on the chest. "Win for me."

I turned on my heels, prepared to scamper out of the room as quickly as possible. "Bella." Edward barked my name out in a harsh command. "Get back here."

Despite myself, I turned. Edward had his hooded jacket open and a Sharpie marker in his hand.

Oh, almost forgot.

Happily, I took the marker and scrawled my signature across his left pectoral. "I love you," I told him sincerely.

"I love you," he answered softly "Go take care of my sister."


	16. Chapter 16

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

A matter of months ago, Edward was the light heavyweight champion with a belt around his hips and a very lucrative six-figure contract. As the lights barely dimmed to announce his entrance to the stadium, he arrived only as a warm-up act to the main event. In his position, stalking into the arena surrounded by his couches and event staff who slapped spectators' hands away as they passed, a lesser man may have felt emasculated. Not Edward. My fighter was less concerned with the status of titles and glory. He fought because he was inordinately good at it. He fought because it soothed him. The stands could have been vacant of shouting onlookers and he'd still find the same thrill once the cage door locked.

Rage Against the Machine blared through the hot, raucous arena as Emmett, Jasper, and Garrett preceded him to the corner just in front of where Alice and I were on our feet, cheering him on. As per usual, Edward paused on the designated mat to pull off his sweats. Submitting himself to the league official, he held his arms out so that his body could be given the once-over. He knocked on his athletic cup to prove he was properly outfitted, displayed the mouth guard already seated in place, and allowed the man to smear petroleum jelly over his eyebrows and cheeks. With a nod, Edward took the steps up to the cage and entered while Garrett and my brothers gathered at the edge of the cage to speak to the back of his head.

Edward's opponent was already waiting for him on the opposite side of the cage. Jason Bridges bounced on the balls of his feet, shaking out his arms and twisting his head from side to side, loosening his neck. He wore red trunks and had elaborate tattoos that covered most of both arms, his shoulders, and looked to travel down his back. Leanly muscular, not bulky, he was evenly matched to Edward's build but four inches shorter with a reach disadvantage of almost three inches.

As the announcer began to introduce each fighter and call out his vital statistics, Edward was menacingly still. He stared Jason down, and I had to imagine he was picturing Jacob Black standing across from him, begging to have his face rearranged. Alice clutched my hand tightly, squeezing the blood from my fingers. Though my limb was quickly going numb from the force of her strong grip, I constricted my hand around hers in comforting answer.

If it got bad, if Edward looked to be in trouble, I'd get her out of there. It would kill me to turn away. I'd be a nervous wreck worrying over him until it was over, but I'd protect Alice and shield her from seeing her brother brutalized. I'd prepared her for a little blood. I'd warned her that Edward would take some hard hits, but neither Edward nor I wanted her to witness the worst the cage had to offer a man. She'd seen enough of her brother's injuries as children.

The referee took the center of the mat and Alice and I sat down, leaning forward with our hands entwined. I doubt either of us was breathing when the ref signaled the fight to begin and the clock ticked off the first second of the first of three scheduled five-minute rounds.

Edward immediately took the center; his hands rose in a protective posture as he settled on the balls of his feat and assumed a southpaw stance. Jason, a lefty, danced around Edward. He jabbed at the air to find his range and trying to coax a reaction out of Edward. Other than circling to maintain position, Edward didn't wince or flinch; he didn't show his cards to indicate his first strike.

That first strike, as it turned out, was more than enough. Jason Bridges shot forward for a takedown, diving at Edward's knees. His brash mistake—a desperate move from a man aging out of the sport and looking to prove a point against the former golden boy—earned him a quick trip to the floor. Edward didn't step back or sprawl to avoid the takedown attempt. Instead, he anticipated and moved lithely to capture Jason's head between both hands before swiftly delivering a brutal knee to his forehead.

Above the shocked and bloodthirsty calls of the crowd, the loud bone-on-bone sound resonated through the arena. Jason went down, eyes shut and body limp, with a resounding thud. And like any good fighter, Edward lunged at the unconscious man to land another blow. His right fist came down, cracking against Jason's jaw, causing his face to bounce off the mat. They call it a "dead check." Never trust one hit to get the knockout. Always be ready to pummel until the referee stops the fight.

After Edward's final blow, the ref threw himself over Jason's unconscious body, waving his hands to indicate the fight was over. The audience exploded in deafening noise. Yes, most crowds prefer a long, bloody, vicious battle. However, no fight fan will complain about a devastating knockout. I glanced up at the clock as my brothers and Garrett rushed into the cage to swarm Edward. Sure enough, Edward had just tied the UFC record for fastest knockout: seven seconds.

"That was for you," I shouted into Alice's ear. As promised, Edward had given her a swift win. I should have known; he'd never break a promise to Alice. She looked dumbfounded at the quickness with which this dreaded episode had come to an end. Her eyes were wide as she watched Edward's hand raised into the air, the announcer calling out the official result.

"Winner by knockout in the first seven seconds of the first round, and still undefeated, Edward Cullen!"

Alice threw her slender arms around me, bouncing up and down and squealing in my ear. I embraced her gratefully, happy that she was excited. "That was amazing! Oh my God," he exclaimed brightly, "I want to see it again!"

"I'm sure it is going up on YouTube as we speak," I answered her in laughter.

She released me and we both turned to watch Edward exit the cage with the guys. Rather than immediately veering off toward the tunnel that led back to the dressing rooms, Edward stalked deliberately in our direction, shoving off the event staff attempting to divert him in the right direction. The other VIP spectators standing around us in the front three rows of folding chairs around the cage pressed in on Alice and I. They craned to snap photos of Edward, press photographers rushing in around him. Not even sweaty but still a magnificent vision of virile man, Edward ignored all others seeking his attention and wrapped his arms around his sister and I. We both lovingly embraced him, smothering him with adulation.

"I'm sorry," I heard him whisper in Alice's ear.

Whether that for watching the fight or for worrying her, I didn't know. Edward released her just as Jasper excitedly scooped her up in his arms. Likewise, Edward constricted around me, pulling me over the temporary guardrail. I wrapped my legs around his waist and hugged him fiercely, kissing his cheeks, his lips, his jaw. I was immune to the shouts and catcalls. I ignored the press snapping photos. In a flurry of movement, our group was whisked away through the tunnels and back to the dressing rooms. Once in the quieter and protected privacy of the inner hallway, Edward set me down on my feet. His smile was triumphant.

xXx

After Edward submitted to the post-fight formalities, the six of us returned to the hotel. I'd thought that Edward would want to hide away in the room for the rest of the night and order room service, but when he suggested that I call the guys to see if they wanted to meet downstairs for dinner, I had the sneaking suspicion that he had something on his mind.

A month ago, I'd never actually gotten an answer from Edward as to whether or not he would attend the wedding in Boston. The big day was still another month out, but a new and more pressing reason to return to his former home was staring us in the face. I respected Edward's original decision that he had no interest in attending the funeral. My first gut reaction to insist that he should go was not well thought out. For all he'd been through, he had every right to shun the city and the woman who failed to raise him.

"They said they'd be ready in a half hour," I informed Edward as I walked back into the bedroom of our suite. He was pulling on a fresh T-shirt, stealing away my view of his bare muscles before I had ample time to appreciate them.

"What do you think?" He sat down on the edge of the bed, holding his hand out for me to join him.

Edward didn't have to say it out loud. I got the impression he was considering attending the funeral and returning to the home he loathed. It was written all over his conflicted, lovely face.

"You were right," I answered softly as I played with his hand in mine. "You don't owe her anything. You've fulfilled whatever obligation you might have had to her. If you don't want to go, no one is going to force you or be disappointed. Alice understands. She loves you."

"I don't want to go," he stated sadly. Edward slid back on the bed until he was propped up against the headboard. I settled myself between his legs, resting my back against his chest as he wrapped himself around me.

"But…" Because we wouldn't be having this conversation if there wasn't a "but" in there somewhere.

"I should be there for Carlisle. She was his sister. He knows, now, about everything that went on in our home for so many years. After my father died, it was pointless to keep up the charade. I told him everything."

"But your mother needed him," I answered in understanding. "You said she had a breakdown?"

"He and Esme brought her back to their place. For several months, she barely spoke a word to anyone. She wouldn't get out of bed on her own. She wouldn't eat. For all intents and purposes, she was already dead. But Carlisle is too good to send her off somewhere. He's too good not to have compassion for her."

"Was he there for you?" I'd spoken to Carlisle and Esme on the phone a few times. Alice and Edward had always spoken of them fondly, but a certain irritation had already burrowed under my skin. Even if he was oblivious, I couldn't escape feeling a small bit of resentment toward the man that should have realized his nephew was being abused.

"As much as I allowed him to be." Edward lowered his lips to my shoulder, kissing me softly while his fingers caressed my arms. "To be honest, he's a saint for still speaking to me."

I didn't ask, but just waited until Edward was prepared to elaborate. There was a long pause while Edward seemed to collect himself and steady his nerves.

"On my worst day since meeting you, I still wasn't as bad as the first year after my father died. To say that I was angry or resentful is putting it mildly. I was destructive, violent, bitter, and determined to punish everyone in my life for the pains I'd suffered. The harder Carlisle tried to connect with me, to reach out, the harder I pushed him away."

"Alice?" I asked curiously. Edward had told me that he'd come to Florida to check up on his sister. From what I'd gathered, they'd spent quite some time apart.

"I'd never take my aggression out on her. She was the one person I couldn't be angry with, so I avoided her instead. We'd rarely talk on the phone. I'd visit her, invited to stay for the weekend, but would usually leave after a few hours. I wanted to be mean and vindictive, but I couldn't feed that fix around her. Instead of subjecting her to how completely fucked in the head I was, I just stayed away."

"When did it change? I mean, now you and Carlisle talk every week. You always seem happy to hear from him. Why is it different now?"

"I guess it changed just before I moved down to Key West. I'd spent a few months in Thailand, training. Call it my spiritual awakening, but I worked through some of my issues and just left all that resentment behind. Well," he edited, "resentment toward my uncle, at least. But Carlisle was right there waiting for me when I got back. He came right up and hugged me when I visited them at their home in New York. It was like none of the years of my acerbic attitude and hateful words had ever happened. He never asked for an apology or even what I'd been up to overseas. He just accepted me without question."

"That's what family is supposed to do," I answered in agreement. "For everything I put Jasper and Emmett through by leaving, they were waiting with a bed and open arms the second I got back. I called Jasper from Heathrow and said I'd be home in fifteen hours. All he wanted to know was where to pick me up."

"I'd happily take that beating a dozen times for the way it all turned out." Edward squeezed me tighter, resting his face against my shoulder. I shuddered slightly, thinking about how I'd found Edward that first night we met. Not a memory I enjoyed reliving.

"I can't promise I'll be too much fun to be around," Edward stated softly. "Honestly, you might not like me very much at all."

"I can handle it," I answered with reassurance. "If this is what you feel you need to do, then I'm going to be there for you. Whatever happens, I won't turn my back on you now."

"I know, angel. I know you won't."

* * *

**End Notes:** Off to Boston we go.


	17. Chapter 17

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N:** I know, it is has been a long time since you've seen an LC update. Well, a long time for my usual promptness, anyway. So, I hope you enjoy. I apologize in advance for the fact that this is unedited. I wanted to get it up to my patient readers ASAP.

* * *

I don't know why I expected Boston to be cold and overcast on this Tuesday morning in the first week of June. I guess I always pictured New England as cold and dreary during any season. The antithesis of the occasion, the sun was bright as it made its ascent across the crisp azure sky. Only delicate wisps of white painted the otherwise clear pallet overhead.

Asymmetrical, sporadic shadows passed the windows of the limousine as we rode through the tree-lined streets of the Boston suburbs. Monday had been the time for warm greetings and introductions. Today solemn quiet was the mood of the hour.

Edward, dressed in an austere black suit, wore dark sunglasses as he stared straight ahead, likely paying little attention to the scenery. Alice's arm was tightly entwined with his, her slight frame leaning against his stoic body as she dabbed the corners of her eyes with a tissue. On her other side, Jasper tenderly held her hand.

My guess was the funeral was hitting Alice harder than she anticipated. Now that she and her brother were here, acknowledging the day, Alice couldn't help her genuine emotion over her mother's death. While Edward, on the other hand, was bitterly quiet. Every hour we'd spent in Boston since arriving Monday afternoon had only served to reinvigorate his feelings of resentment toward his mother and this city.

When we entered the manicured lawns of the cemetery when Elizabeth would be put to rest, I steeled myself against thoughts of Charlie. I missed my father, and rarely did I have unhappy thoughts where he was concerned, but funerals were not a pleasant subject for me. I refused to show any sign of my discomfort or shed a tear about my father's passing on this particular day. Edward needed me to be strong for him. It wouldn't do for me to break down while Edward was fuming with years of unresolved rage just under the polite surface of his dethatched façade.

Through the winding paths that led up a green hill dotted with little stone monuments to the deceased, I felt Edward's tension increase. We were here, this was truly happening, and Edward was regretting the decision to attend the funeral. I knew, by the stiffness in his muscles and the increasing force with which he gripped my hand, that he was having trouble remembering why he'd agreed to return to Boston at all.

Not that I'd blame him, but if we made it through the graveside ceremony without Edward breaking the minister's nose or taking a sledgehammer to the headstone, then we'd call it a win.

Gently, the limo pulled to a stop. Through the darkly tinted side windows, I saw the white canopy set up over the gravesite. Three rows of velvet-covered chairs were arranged underneath, along with a few tasteful arrangements of white flowers. The minister stood waiting for our arrival, politely standing on the opposite side of the casket draped in lilies, clutching a bible in his hands. At least I assumed it was a bible. He could have been passing the time reading a leather-bound copy of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea for all I knew. Probably not.

The driver came around to open the rear passenger door, standing back and waiting patiently as Alice straitened her hemline and took Jasper's hand.

"Go ahead," Edward murmured softly to his sister. "I'll be right behind you."

He gave his sister a kiss on the forehead as she wiped her tears from his lapel and squeezed his arm one last time. A moment later, the door closed behind them, leaving Edward and I in the darkened car alone. I watched as Alice and Jasper fell in step beside Carlisle and Esme, proceeding up the hill toward the grave. Behind our car, a small compliment of the Cullen's closest friends followed. It would be a small funeral, attended by less than a dozen others.

I slid my arm around Edward's bicep, leaning in to his side and threading my fingers with his. He closed his grip around my hand and tilted his head down to rest his forehead against my temple.

"You smell good," he whispered.

"I smell like you," I replied.

In the hurry to unpack from Charlotte and repack for Boston, I'd left my toiletry bag sitting on the bathroom counter in Edward's condo. When we showered this morning, I used Edward's shampoo and body wash. It was a gentle reminder of our first night together when I'd done the same thing while showering on his boat.

"I like it," Edward answered approvingly. That, I knew. He expelled a breath roughly, sliding his free hand over my thigh. "I also like you in a dress."

Alice had helped me select something appropriately modest for the occasion from her collection of hand-me-downs in Edward's closet. It was a structured black dress with a high neckline and cap sleeves, the hem hitting just under the knees. The dress was fine—I rather liked it, actually—but the shoes were already giving me blisters and I hadn't even been wearing them for two hours.

"You don't have to go up there if you don't want to," I told him. "You came. I think that's more than anyone has a right to expect from you."

"Thank you." He pressed a soft kiss to the side of my head. "But I can't let Alice sit up there without me. I'm doing this for her. I came to Boston for Carlisle, but I got in this car for my sister."

"Are you ready?"

"No. Let's do it anyway."

Edward stepped out of the car first, holding his hand out to steady me as I exited. The sun was blinding outside the shelter of the limo's tinted windows. I squinted, holding my hand up against the brightness. Ever attentive, Edward pulled my sunglasses out of his breast pocket. With his arm secure around my waist, Edward led us up to the gravesite. Two chairs were waiting for us in the front row next to the Cullens and Alice and Jasper, but Edward paused behind the last row of seats and then took two more steps backward.

"This is close enough," he whispered when I looked up to read his expression partially obstructed by his own sunglasses. I didn't saw a word.

After getting permission from Carlisle, the minister began his prepared statements. There was almost no mention of Elizabeth's life as she'd lived it. He spoke instead of forgiveness; his words a carefully crafted avoidance of the past while hinting at the way forward. The meaning there was not lost on me, so I knew Edward understood.

After all, Elizabeth had committed suicide. In the Catholic faith, that was an unforgiveable sin. Maybe this guy was Episcopal. I had no idea. Nonetheless, he probably wasn't privy to the dirty details. Instead, diplomatic Carlisle would have had to explain in as few words as possible that hers was a past better left unmentioned. She had no friends. Those in attendance here were so in support of Carlisle and Esme. She barely had a family. One daughter who she'd ignored and a brother she lied to for years. Then there was the illegitimate son she'd been obligated to raise.

"I don't fucking believe it," Edward hissed under his breath.

His sudden outburst, though quiet enough that no one else a few feet in front of us seemed to notice, startled me. I tightened my grip around his back when I felt him jerk just slightly. Maybe we wouldn't avoid a violent altercation.

"What is it?" I looked up to his concealed eyes, trying to figure out what the minister had said to set him off.

"Royce King," he snarled. "Bastard had the audacity to show his face here."

Rosalie's fiancé.

"Why would he be here?" Surely, if he'd somehow caught wind of Edward's maneuvers to take over and liquidate his company, he wouldn't come to a funeral to make a scene.

"Rose," he answered through tightly clenched teeth. A muscle in his jaw twitched. I felt Edward tense, though neither Alice nor I had ever gotten an explanation for Edward's hatred toward Royce. It was much deeper than business. "She's here with her parents. Friends of Carlisle and Esme."

Edward nodded to the left, indicating a group of four. A man anchored the line of three blonde heads. His black hair was cropped short and slicked back like a pool of crude oil. He wore a black suit, but I couldn't discern anything else about him from behind.

As the minister concluded his remarks, Carlisle and Esme stood to place flowers on Elizabeth's casket. No further words were spoken as the ornately carved box was lowered into the ground. Alice didn't even spare a second glance as he stood and walked away from her mother's grave, clutching Jasper's hand and tugging him along as quickly as was manageable without actually looking like she was running away. Alice had shown up, sat through the short ceremony, and now she was well within her rights to want the tell out of there.

The four of us wasted no time in making our escape. I had the distinct impression that Edward was going to make a scene if we all didn't follow his lead and return to the car hastily.

"Should we wait for Carlisle and Esme's car?" Alice asked as the driver held the door open for her.

"No." He spared a glance to the driver, receiving a nod in return.

No sooner had the door shut behind the last of us, the limo was pulling away from the cemetery.

xXx

"I need to make a phone call," Edward told me as we ascended the stairs to our room on the third floor of the Cullen's Victorian home tucked back from the road behind two acres of towering trees. "Please wait for me upstairs, love. I'm sure Alice can manage a pair of flats for you."

The non sequitur threw me for a moment. Edward glanced down, indicating my shoes and the fact that I was trying to put as little weight on my right foot as possible. The blister on my heel was excruciating. Of course, he'd noticed. Edward kissed the top of my head, leaving me on the second floor outside Alice and Jasper's room while he retreated back downstairs.

I wouldn't complain about getting out the torture devices strapped to my feet, but the kind gesture was an excuse for Edward to be alone for a few minutes. Phone calls that could not be made in my company were never a good sign.

"Alice?" I knocked softly on light wooden door. Jasper answered me, stepping back to let me in the huge guest room.

Each room that faced the back of the house had a balcony and floor-to-ceiling windows. In fact, nearly the entire back half of the house was glass. Esme had transformed the Victorian into a lovely mixture of modernity and old-world elegance.

"She's in the restroom," he informed me.

I followed him to the small sofa situated in the corner, which created a sitting area with a short table, overstuffed chair, and a reading lamp. Alice had wiped nearly all her makeup off on the ride to the cemetery.

"Where's Edward?" he asked, but he really wanted to know how the man was holding up.

"Making a phone call."

Jasper was dressed in a black fitted suit that I'd never seen him wear before. I wondered what occasion had necessitated the purchase while I'd been gone. Being in Boston was weird for both of us. There was no question that we'd be here to support Alice and Edward, but attending the funeral of a woman neither of us was fond of, with a family we'd never met, was more than a little awkward. For both of us, this was the big introduction to the Cullens as the boyfriend and girlfriend. While Carlisle and Esme seemed to quickly accept us, we both felt out of place.

"Alice's friend that is getting married later this month," I began, waiting for Jasper to nod that he knew whom I meant, "she was at the funeral with her parents and her fiancé."

"Royce," Jasper answered.

"Did Emmett tell you about the night at Tony's when Alice brought it up?"

"Something about Edward going all Gordon Gekko?" Jasper sat back, settling in for my explanation.

"Royce King's company is in the process of declaring bankruptcy. Edward intends to buy out the controlling interest before the company's assets go to auction. He's going to dismantle the enterprise."

"I don't get it," Jasper rubbed his hand over his face. We'd had a very long day yesterday, coupled with another early morning today. "What does it matter who buys the company if it is just going to be broken up at auction?"

"King is declaring bankruptcy to save the company," I replied, reiterating Edward's explanation when I'd asked the same question. "He has to get out from under the debt by selling off a few assets, but he wants to consolidate the rest of the profitable business."

"And Edward is going to strip the whole thing out from under him. How?"

"Royce runs the company, he built it, but he had to trade off most of his controlling shares when he couldn't pay back the loans he took out to avoid going bankrupt in the first place. Edward has approached King's creditors and is in the process of buying their shares out from under his nose. He'll never see it coming."

"He'll make a profit selling off the bits and pieces," Alice interjected. We both turned to see her enter the bedroom from the attached bath, her face showing mo lingering sign of this morning's early tears. "But Edward isn't going through all this trouble for the money. It is personal with Royce."

"Why?" Jasper held out his hand for her.

I moved over to the overstuffed chair across from them, giving Alice my spot next to Jasper.

"No idea." Alice pointed a glance at me, again trying to dig at answers, but I had none. "He told me I should talk Rose out of marrying him, but I just can't do it. Every time I talk to her, she sounds so happy. They're in love," Alice sighed in defeat. She knew better than to question her brother's warnings. "I asked Rosalie what she would do if Royce woke up broke. She told me it didn't matter."

"It is easy to be no noble when you have money," Jasper countered.

"She has her own money. Rose runs her own online fashion retail site," Alice explained, trying to stand up for her friend. "And her family has money," she conceded. "It isn't like they'll be out on the street or anything."

"So what's the problem now?" Jasper turned his attention back to me, keeping his arm comfortingly around Alice's shoulders.

"He was at the funeral with the Hales," I answered. Jasper raised an eyebrow. "Yeah," I answered his silent comment. "Edward was pissed."

"I haven't had a second to breathe, much less call Rose since we landed yesterday. I didn't know she was planning on coming with her parents. I really should have thought about that," Alice admonished herself.

"You didn't do anything wrong," I returned. "You have enough on your plate without having to check the guest list on Edward's behalf. If King comes over with the rest of them, we'll just keep Edward away from him. I doubt he'll be in the mood to mingle with Carlisle's guests anyway."

As per usual with funerals, there was entirely too much food waiting downstairs and set up on the back deck overlooking the Cullen's several acres. Their guests would come, comfort, eat, and awkwardly avoid the topic of why Elizabeth's children were avoiding the entire affair.

xXx

After standing in the spacious living room long enough to appear polite, Edward escorted us to the library in the west wing of the house on the first floor. We were close enough to the areas designated for entertaining so as not to be obvious about our avoidance, but not so available that anyone would be under the mistaken impression that Edward welcomed company. While Alice and Jasper stayed behind to converse with the Hales and run interference, Edward had managed to skillfully avoid Royce King and Rosalie. He hadn't asked Carlisle to toss Royce out all together, so I guess that was the extent of his patience for the day.

"Should I call for a cab to pick up Emmett?" I asked Edward. I'd been trying to read a book, though Edward pacing the burgundy rug in front of the empty fireplace diverted my attention.

"No. I've sent a car. He should be here soon."

"Already? I thought he wasn't coming in until tonight."

Emmett wanted to stay in Florida to check on the gym. He also thought it best to delay his arrival, giving Edward and Alice some time alone with their family. It was Alice who, at the insistence of her aunt and uncle, asked Emmett to fly up to join us in Boston. I didn't know how long Edward would tolerate being in the city, but Alice and Jasper were staying at least until Friday.

"I offered him an earlier flight," Edward shrugged. Maybe he missed my brother's company after all. If we were going to stay for any length of time, Edward could benefit from one more friend to take his mind off things.

"Thank you."

Edward turned, smiling at me as he gave up his nervous wandering. He'd ditched his jacket, loosened his tie, and undone the first button on his crisp while shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

"I'm aware that this makes me a hypocrite," he began with a smirk, "but is it too early for a drink?"

"It's five o'clock somewhere," I replied with a mischievous grin, rising off the couch to approach Edward. "You want to go raid the liquor cabinet?"

I slid my arms around Edward's waist, leaning back to look up into his tired green eyes. He'd shaved last night before bed, but he'd been less concerned about his appearance this morning, stubble poking out along his jaw and upper lip. Edward cradled me against his chest, letting his hands wander down my back.

"I'm not sure that my aunt and uncle even have such a thing," he replied, his voice hushed and low. "But I know there are a couple bottles of good wine in the pantry."

"Lead the way."

It was a funeral after all. Many cultures around the world mourned or celebrated—depending on differing views of the occasion—with flowing bottles as a matter of tradition. Hell, Edward was Irish, after all. Wasn't it mandatory?

Slipping in the side entrance of he kitchen without being spotted, like two kids on tiptoes sneaking cookies after bedtime, Edward took my hand and pulled me along as he riffled through the large pantry in search of our treasure.

"Red or white?" he asked, holding up one bottle of each for my inspection.

"Red," I answered, not bothering to look too long at the labels. What the hell did I know about wine? "I can't drink white when it's warm." That was about it.

Edward nodded, setting the other bottle back in its place on the shelf. I was a bit surprised Edward hadn't led me to a basement wine cellar, but then the Cullens didn't strike me as the ostentatious type. Sure, they had money, but their home wasn't adorned with pointless pieces of ornamentation. The only purpose of which was to speak to how expensive it was. Like the Cullens themselves, their interior of their home was understated and comfortable. So, no $20,000 bottles of scotch.

From one of the kitchen cabinets he pulled down two large wine glasses and held them in one hand, the bottle in the other, as he wrapped his arm around me and guided us through the single door that led to the wraparound porch toward the back of the house. The other guests were mingling between the living room and back deck, but our escape to the outdoors was masked by the lattice divider that separated the deck's wet bar from the rest of the porch. Quickly, we scurried down the steps toward the detached garage.

"Why do I get the feeling you did a lot of sneaking around your boarding school as a teenager?" I asked Edward, raising my eyebrow in accusation.

He set the wine bottle on the ground along with our glasses, bending down to pull my shoes from my disgruntled feet. I'd forgotten to ask Alice for flats. With Edward's help, I shimmied my way up to sit on the truck of Carlisle's black Mercedes.

"A man doesn't sneak," Edward replied wryly. "We maneuver with stealth."

I smiled, rolling my eyes as he popped the cork on the wine and poured a generous amount into each of our glasses. We were forgoing the pretentions of drinking wine, both slugging back a gulp without letting it breathe, or whatever you do with wine. I had never noticed a difference in the taste from a box of $10 wine to the fancy stuff Edward liked to push on me. It was all the same to my tongue.

"I want to know what you were like in high school." I eyed Edward over the rim of my glass, studying the hard lines of his face and amused expression. Alone in the garage, hiding out like a couple of teenagers who'd been pilfering beers, Edward's mood had already improved.

"Hmm..." Edward leaned against the trunk of the car, using one hand to trail his fingers up and down my bare calves. "I'd have been terrified of you," he answered as he bent to kiss against my neck.

"I don't buy it."

"Honestly. You know you're spitfire and you like intimidating people. Especially men. Fuck, Bella. You at sixteen? I might have decked every guy that looked at you, but I wouldn't have had the nerve to talk to you myself."

"I can't picture you as ever being shy." My fingers mad a fist around the material of Edward's shirt, holding him close to me as he nuzzled his nose against my temple. "If anything, I think you're the intimidating one." But he did have me pegged. It was easy to act like a badass in high school when I was standing with Emmett and Jasper. My big mouth got them into a few scuffles back in the day.

"I had self-esteem issues," he remarked offhandedly, and then I felt like an ass for not drawing the connection between his history of abuse and a poor self-image. Of course Edward would be wary of social interaction. "But mostly I was hiding injuries or wanted to avoid making friends so that I didn't have to talk about my home life. I started playing sports as a means of an excuse when I returned to school with new bruises or broken bones. I was hiding from everyone."

"Did you have many friends?" I pulled back, running my fingers through Edward's hair and giving him my full attention. We were having a serious conversation, which wasn't the time for playing around.

"A few. Four or five guys in particular from my rugby team I've stayed in contact with over the years."

"Girlfriends?" I poked him the chest, smirking. If Edward pretended that he hadn't been mauled daily around campus, I'd call him a liar to his face.

He narrowed his eyes at me playfully, brushing the backs of his fingers over my cheek and then tracing his thumb over my bottom lip. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

"Nice dodge," I remarked sarcastically.

"I was a cliché loner. I studied, though no matter what grades I brought home I knew it wouldn't be enough to stave off my father. I played sports, attended the necessary events, and dated. Alice was forever trying to fix me up. Frankly, hormones not withstanding, I didn't have much intellectual or emotional interest in the type of girl that attended our school."

"Hormones not withstanding," I repeated with a mockingly serious nod. I wouldn't make him say it out loud. He probably rounded the bases a few times but didn't go as far as handing out the girlfriend title too often. "Just as long as we aren't going to be running into any of your scorned lovers while we're in town."

"There's no chance of that," he confirmed.

Our attention was diverted toward the circular driveway outside the garage when an unfamiliar voice called out to us.

"I want to see the rat bastard! Where is Masen hiding?"

* * *

**End Notes:** Oh snap! I guess that cat's out of the bag, huh? Now, assuming that voice is who you think it is, why would he or she call Edward by his former last name? Hmm...


	18. Chapter 18

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

Edward stiffened next to me; his spine straightening to the harsh voice that demanded after him. "Go inside," he told me quietly as he took my wine glass from my hand and gripped my waist to pull me from the top of the Mercedes's trunk. My bare feet met the cold cement floor of the garage.

I didn't make it as far as putting on my shoes when a skinny man of average height swung around the corner of the detached garage to glare at Edward.

Royce.

I recognized his oil-black hair and narrow shoulders wrapped in a tailored black suit. One side of his upper lip twitched in suppressed anger, his dark eyes narrowed, and he held a cell phone in one fist at his side. He had the sort of sleazy sneer one would expect to find on a used car salesman.

"You son of a bitch!" He yelled as he stomped forward.

A curvy blonde in a black wrap dress appeared at his side, clutching at his bicep as though she were trying to stay a mast's boom against gale-force winds. "Royce, no. You will not make a scene here," she ordered. I presumed her to be Rosalie Hale.

Royce shook her hands off of him, stalking forward. Edward maneuvered me behind him, meeting Royce at the threshold of the open garage. He was shrouded in shadow under the roof while Royce and Rosalie were lit with the fierce light of the sun overhead.

"I'll have your ass in court," Royce proclaimed, his long face reddening incrementally. "I'll take you for every dime you have," he threatened, pointing a long finger inches from Edward's chest. He'd be lucky if Edward didn't snap it off.

"Read the contract," Edward replied with an unflustered tone that was deceptively civil. "The NDA has no relevance on this transaction. It's just business."

"This is personal," Royce exclaimed loudly, his dark eyebrows rising higher on his forehead as Edward refused to rise to his anger. "This is retaliation."

"Why?" Edward asked in a calmly mocking tone. "Have you done something to warrant retribution?"

Royce's menacingly dark eyes narrowed, his jaw twitching with the urge to utter a retort, but clearly he refused to give the thought a voice. "I won't let you steal my company."

"You can't stop me," Edward replied dismissively. "It's done."

"I'll ruin you. I'll burn you for this," Royce threatened again, his words sounding hollow even to my ears. He was a desperate man grasping at illusions of straws.

"Go home, Royce. You're embarrassing yourself." Edward turned his back to the emasculated man, gently wrapping his arm around my back to escort us away.

"Royce," Rose bit at him scathingly, "we're leaving. Now."

"Don't turn your back on me," he yelled, rearing back his fist to throw a sucker punch.

"Edward!" I ducked out of the way as Edward turned and deftly avoided the blindside attack, landing a right cross directly to Royce's chin. He went down limply, dazed for several seconds before Rosalie attempted to sit him up.

"Christ, Edward." She shot him a cold glare while tending to her fiancé. "You didn't have to go that far."

"You've made a poor choice with this one," Edward answered her with an equally chilling tone. "Now get him the hell off our property."

"Get off me." Royce bristled at Rosalie's attempt to help him up. Clumsily, he stood, turning his ire on her. "You backstabbing bitch," he seethed. "You knew about this, didn't you?"

"I assure you she didn't."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" She shouted at Royce as they retreated. "Why would I hide something like that?"

"Because you're a conniving little shrew, just your mother."

"That's enough," Edward barked roughly. "Bella, take Rose inside." He looked at me over his shoulder; his was face hard, determined.

I moved immediately to take Rosalie by the hand, but Royce jerked her other wrist violently, pulling her away.

"You're not staying here," he ordered. "Get in the car."

"You don't dictate to me." Rose smacked his hand off of her. "You can call me when you've come to your senses." She quickly spun on her heel to walk away, both of us moving toward the driveway.

"I said get in the car." He yanked Rosalie again by her forearm. A second later, I heard the loud crack of Royce's face meeting the brick-paved drive. Blood poured from his nose and leaked to the ground.

"Find him a car and put him in it," Edward roughly spoke to a suit-clad driver who was standing nearby. He pulled Royce up by his jacket lapel and threw his back against one of the waiting town cars in the driveway. "If you find yourself within one hundred feet of me, I suggest you run the other way."

As the driver ushered Royce into a vehicle, Edward paused a moment to wait for the car to pull away. When he returned his attention to Rosalie and I, both standing in silence as we'd watched the violence play out, Edward narrowed his gaze darkly.

"Get in the goddamn house," he hissed. "Now."

xXx

I stood near at the edge of the granite bathroom counter near the door while Alice calmed Rosalie. She'd sat her friend on the edge of the bathtub to wipe off her smeared eyeliner and offer her a glass of water to help wash away the redness that stained Rosalie's pale skin. Rose was flustered, irate, and trying not to cry.

"I'm sorry," Alice stated again. "I should have been there. Edward is a lit fuse today."

"Today?" Rosalie asked incredulously. She gently pushed Alice away, taking the tissue from her hand and then brushing a few stray blonde curls from her face. Rose sighed at Alice's increasingly remorseful look. "It's not your fault. They're grown men. They shouldn't need a chaperone. Royce said he was just going outside for a smoke while he answered a phone call."

She looked up at me, one perfectly plucked eyebrow rising in question. "Does she talk?" I didn't much care for the catty tone.

"This is Bella," Alice answered with an admonishing glance at her friend. "She's Jasper's roommate and Edward's girlfriend."

"She's living with Jasper?" Still, Rose appraised me with cold blue eyes while speaking like I wasn't in the room.

Alice looked to me to answer, but I remained immobile and locked my jaw. I suddenly understood why Edward didn't like this chick.

"They're best friends," she defended. "Like brother and sister."

"Right," the snarky blonde scoffed. I turned and left the room without a word, closing the door behind me. So much for making friends.

"What's going on in there?" Jasper stood from the small sofa on the far side of the guest room as he heard me enter.

"Alice is taking care of it." I sank to the cushion next to Jasper, resting my head on his shoulder tiredly. "And she already hates me," I added. "Oh, and we're a scandal now. Apparently we're having an illicit affair."

"What is it with girls and bathrooms?" He stretched his arm out over the back of the sofa, allowing me to lean against his chest. At least I'd ditched the shoes.

"No idea," I groaned.

"Well, at least tell people I was good," Jasper joked.

"You got it, pal." I closed my eyes, exhausted from our early morning but more worn out for all the bitter excitement. "Oh yeah," I mumbled, "Emm is getting in early."

"He sent me a text when he landed. Where's your phone?"

"No idea," I mumbled less coherently. I didn't bother bringing a purse to the funeral. Anyone who needed to get in touch with me was in this house or on his way to it. "Edward, probably."

"And he is?" Jasper rubbed the top of my arm, lulling me to sleep while insisting on talking.

"Hitting things?" He hadn't come upstairs since roughly ordering me inside.

"Is Edward going to be spending the night in jail?" Jasper murmured softly.

"Don't know. Hope not."

xXx

"Hey, Bells. Wake up."

I felt something shake me gently, nudging my arm. Groaning, I shifted to tilt my head up. When I opened my eyes, I saw Emmett's silly grin inches from my face. I was curled up on the sofa, sans Jasper.

"Hi Emm." I pushed myself upright and rubbed at my eyes. "How long have you been here?"

"Just got in. Jasper said you were taking a nap." Emmett was crouched on the floor with, dressed in a polo shirt and kaki pants. He smiled as I blinked to make my eyes focus.

"Yeah, I guess I fell asleep. Where's Alice?"

"They're all downstairs. I guess most of the other people have left. I got the introductions." He came to sit next to me, wrapping his arm over my shoulder to tilt me from the armrest of the sofa to his side. "Jasper said I missed all the fun."

I sighed, leaning my head back against Emmett's arm. "Royce King showed up, started some shit with Edward, tried to catch him with a cheap shot, and then manhandled his fiancé. So, you can imagine how well that turned out."

Edward has a short temper, but a sure way to meet the business end of his fist was to raise a hand to a woman. Fuck. I shouldn't have let him force me back into the house. I jumped up from the sofa, swaying slightly with the sudden movement that threw me off balance.

"Bella?" Emmett steadied me, looking up in confusion.

"Where's Edward?"

"Esme said he was in the study with Carlisle. Relax," he encouraged. "The house is still standing. The Hales are on the back porch with Esme, Alice and Jasper. I don't think they know. Everyone looked…well, as good as you can look after a funeral."

"I guess we should go join them. I didn't realize I'd fallen asleep. We're being rude."

"You're being rude," Emmett replied with a smirk. "I just got here."

xXx

I wanted to check on Edward, but I thought it best that I not interrupt his time with Carlisle. Instead, I found myself awkwardly smiling and nodding my head while the Hales talked about polo, Cape Cod, and a myriad of other topics to which Jasper, Emmett, and I had nothing to offer. It was odd seeing this side of Alice. Though I was aware of her refined upbringing, she seemed much more natural at home in Key West. Apparently Alice had a horse and was a avid rider as a child. I was never the sort that wanted a pony. I'd take a boat pitching up over the waves making ten knots any day.

"I'm so looking forward to your wedding," Esme professed as she smiled kindly at Rosalie. To her credit, Rose had a convincingly polite smile plastered on her lips, masking the day's earlier events. "You must be terribly busy finalizing plans."

"Mother has taken on most of the logistics," Rosalie answered while her mother beamed and rearranged stray locks of hair on her daughter's shoulder. "I don't even remember the color of the flowers."

Esme laughed lightly, looking affectionately at Alice and Jasper sitting in the deck chairs across from her. Emmett and I shared a love seat around the arrangement of ottomans that served as a group of coffee tables in the center of the circle.

"I haven't received Edward's RSVP," Mrs. Hale noted. She was an elegant older version of Rose, right down to the slightly upturned nose and cobalt blue eyes. "He is coming, yes?"

I glanced toward Alice, hoping she'd take this one and spare me. "His schedule has been difficult these last few months. I know that he has several commitments in June."

"You remember," Mr. Hale spoke to his wife. "Edward does those martial arts competitions." The distinguished-looking older man waved his hand in the air, searching for the term. "Cage fighting or some such thing." His tone was more curious than derogatory.

"Yes," Alice answered, "He trains extensively, in addition to managing other business affairs. Jasper is Edward's coach," she added proudly, squeezing his arm. "And Emmett owns the gym in Key West."

"Is that right?" Mr. Hale perked up at the mention of Emmett's role of a fellow business owner. "A good friend of mine owns a chain in the Southwest. Perhaps you're acquainted with Martin Jackson?"

"Sorry," Emmett shrugged. "Never heard of him."

I smirked, biting my lip at Emmett's unpretentious response. Now, if Mr. Hale went golfing on Thursdays with Dana White, Emmett would have hopped right in the man's lap and offered to marry his daughter. Somehow, I didn't think there was going to be a wedding later this month, but now wasn't the time to speak of rescinding invitations. At least today had closed the discussion on Edward and I attending that event.

"Edward, we were just talking about you. Please, come have a seat. Explain to Mr. Hale what it is you do." Esme held out her hand, greeting Edward warmly as he and Carlisle stepped onto the deck.

"Another time, perhaps." Carlisle quickly interjected as he bent to kiss his wife on the cheek. "I think that it's time we let Edward and Alice attend to their guests." He turned to Mr. and Mrs. Hale with a polite smile. "They just arrived yesterday after a trip to Charlotte for Edward's match," Carlisle explained.

"Of course," Mr. Hale answered. "And we will take the hint and leave you to your family." He stood with his wife, shaking Carlisle's hand. "Again, our deepest sympathies." Edward nodded, standing at his uncle's side. "Rose, would you like to ride with us?" She stood, nodding reassurance to Alice's concerned expression.

"Royce works too much," her mother said to Esme as they hugged. "We can hardly keep him at the table for an entire meal."

As Carlisle escorted the Hales to their car, Esme led Emmett upstairs to get him settled in another guest room on the second floor. Jasper was itching to get out of his suit, which left Edward and I alone on the deck. He approached me, holding out his hand to help me up from the love seat.

"I'm sorry," he offered softly. Despite his words and calm tone, his expression was still tightly guarded.

"I know." I expected the mood swings, for one reason or another.

"How about bath?" Edward wrapped me in his arms, one hand brushing my hair behind my ear and then trailing his fingertips delicately down my neck. "I've neglected you, abandoning you to strangers."

"It wasn't that bad," I shrugged as I leaned against his chest. It wasn't a ballroom in Miami. "A bath sounds perfect."

And then I was going to get some answers.


	19. Chapter 19

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

Edward pulled me against his chest as I slid down into the wide tub. The steaming water instantly turned my skin pink and penetrated my muscles to relax some of the tension I'd been carrying since landing in Boston. It wasn't my own apprehension or anxiety that knotted my shoulders and neck, but rather empathy for Edward's turmoil. When he was in pain, I couldn't help but experience it as well.

Edward spread his legs; his knees poked out of the water while I sat between them with my back pressed to his firm chest. I let my head fall on his shoulder, closing my eyes and sighing deeply as I appreciated the quiet comfort. He placed both of his strong hands on my shoulders, using his thumbs to knead at the taut muscles.

"You don't have to," I mumbled in a half-hearted attempt to dissuade him.

"Relax, angel." He kissed my temple, continuing to massage me with expert pressure.

"I should be tending to you," I argued with a bit more determination. "You're the one who has a right to be stressed out."

"Taking care of you makes me happy, love. Touching you relaxes me. Now stop arguing." He punctuated his command by firmly gripping the back of my neck between both hands and digging his thumbs into the trained tendons forcefully. It was painful, drawing a grunt from my throat, but only in the way a deep massage causes a moment of discomfort before your body turns to mush.

"So be it." I gave in as Edward angled my head down to gain better access, the rest of my body slumping to his control.

"Good girl," he purred against my ear and then pressed a soft kiss to my neck. "I like it when you're agreeable and submit."

I hummed to the decadently thorough ministrations of Edward's hands. "You like it when I'm disobedient and stubborn," I mumbled with my chin pressed to my chest. My fingers moved to Edward's legs, trailing back and forth over the lean muscles.

"True enough," he agreed. I felt Edward's smirk. "I'll have you either way."

"Just so we understand each other."

"Always have to have the last word," he remarked.

"Yep."

"Cute, Bella."

"Thank you."

Edward quickly took a handful of my hair and tugged, exposing the column of my neck as he nipped at the flesh. Point taken. I didn't respond verbally. After all, I had won the last word on the matter. Instead, I pressed my backside against his semi-hard shaft. My teasing earned a soft groan from Edward, and he brought one arm around my torso to possessively palm my breast.

"Be still," he commanded in a hushed voice.

While kneading one breast tenderly, Edward reached for the bottle of body wash and a washcloth. He proceeded to drag the soft fabric over my shoulders, my arms, and across my chest. I pulled one leg out of the tub and then the other as he strained forward to lather every inch of bare skin not submerged. Again, I leaned back and relented to his touch. My eyes closed as I simply surrendered to the sensual and comforting feeling of Edward pampering me so lovingly.

"I'm sorry about what you saw out there," he stated quietly. Edward's lips brushed against my shoulders as he poured water over me to rinse away the soap. "I won't tolerate a man—especially that man—roughing up a woman. Absolutely not on my family's property."

"You don't have to apologize for that. Royce deserved what he got. I can't believe Rosalie would put up with a man like that."

"She wouldn't," he answered with an angry edge to his voice. "Rosalie knows better. She'd have said something to Alice and I'd have put a stop to it a long time ago. I think I pushed Royce past his point of control. She just happened to be in the vicinity to witness his true nature. In public, at least, Royce is very concerned with appearances."

"What does that mean?" I turned my face to look into Edward's darkly agitated stare.

"He's not a good person. He's an arrogant, deceptive, manipulative, sick fuck," Edward snarled. "I'll admit, I got a bitter sense of satisfaction at the idea that Rose would be saddled with such a pitiful excuse for a man. That was petty of me. In truth, no woman deserves that. Hopefully she'll be calling off the wedding and will get as far away from Royce as possible."

"Two things," I began as I straightened up and shifted between Edward's legs to look at him fully. "First, why do you hate Rosalie so much? Not that I haven't already formed a similar opinion of her." Edward raised an eyebrow to my last statement, but I saw the inclination rising in his eyes to shut down the topic. "And second, what is the story with you and Royce?"

"Are you ready to get out of the tub?"

"Are you going to answer me?"

Without a reply, Edward rose to his feet and stepped out of the tub. He held out his hand, helping me up. He wrapped me in a towel, pulling another around his hips after drying off. "Come, love. You look tired."

"Edward." I stared at him unflinchingly. I'd be damned if I was going to let him avoid the subject a second time.

"Come get in bed with me," he pleaded softly while sliding his fingertips down my arm to take my hand. "Please, love."

I let him guide me to the bed where Edward pulled back the duvet and sheets for both of us to slide in. Edward dropped his towel and sat back against the headboard. I discarded my towel as well, again resuming my position between his legs. He pulled the blankets up high around my shoulders as we both slid down to recline. Edward's warm, muscular arms enveloped me.

"I don't hate Rosalie," he began with a sigh. "I don't particularly like her. But I won't argue that there isn't animosity between us. She doesn't know about my past, Bella. Alice and I went to school with her," he explained. "We didn't talk about it to anyone, and certainly not our peers."

"And Alice?" I hugged Edward's arms closer around my stomach, gently stroking his soft and slightly damp skin.

"She's always protected my privacy. Rose understands that we didn't have a particularly warm relationship with our parents, but that's nothing unique."

"Then what is it about her?"

"In her mind, I'm just a destructive prick with a bad temper. It wasn't always that way, no. We never got along, but we were just as happy to ignore one another. After my father died, well…you know."

I reached up with one hand, stroking Edward's cheek and lightly scratching my nails through his stubble. He smiled tightly; his eyes were a mixture of soft adoration and suppressed anger. I'd become used to the dark look that overtook his expression when the topic of his father was in the open.

"Not long after his death, I escorted Alice to an event at Emerson. Needless to say, I wasn't especially enthused about the idea. Other than attending classes, I rarely left my apartment in the first few weeks. My sister, of course, wore me down. I've always hated saying no to her and so she doesn't hear it from me very often. The short version is that the man escorting Rose was sent home with a broken nose. He left two teeth on the pavement that night."

I didn't ask why or what had started the fight. Well, a fight would imply that the other man had the opportunity to respond. I doubted that very much. It didn't matter why or what had set Edward off. Maybe it was nothing at all. A look. A comment. An inflection or just the damn color of his tie. I understood. At that point in Edward's history, it wouldn't have made a difference if the man were the Pope or fucking Gandhi. Edward needed to inflict pain. He needed to hit someone and watch him bleed. And so he'd fulfilled that need. Edward was under no misconception that his behavior had been justified at the time. He was well aware that he had been out of control. He'd also put in the effort over the last two years to quiet his demons.

I stretched up and placed a gentle kiss to Edward's neck and another just under the corner of his jaw. It went without saying, but I'd never judge Edward for his past. I had committed more indiscretions than I cared to remember. If Edward knew of my former proclivities, he might see me in an entirely different light. I wasn't proud of the person I'd become after Mike. The longer I spent with Edward over the past several months, the more I felt shame for the ways I'd tried to regain a sense of control over my life where men were concerned. Now having experienced what true love, respect, and trust felt like, my mistakes disgusted me. I'd had two men the preceding my first encounter with Edward. He'd called me an angel. I was far from innocent or pure.

I shivered at the thought. Edward tucked the blankets tighter around our bodies, constricting his arms around me and squeezing his thighs to hold me closer. "That wasn't the last time Rose saw the dark, violent side of me. And the more she witnessed, the more adamant she became that I was as threat to Alice. She loves my sister fiercely. It is the only reason I haven't ever dissuaded my sister from associating with Rose. In my experience, Rosalie is supremely selfish, materialistic, self-absorbed, and has very little compassion for others. Still, she adores Alice and has been a loyal friend to her. So, for the most part, I've bitten my tongue and aloud Rose to think me the vile, despicable man she's always believed me to be. I suppose it isn't entirely unfair or unwarranted. I've earned the reputation."

"That doesn't mean you have to like her," I answered for him.

"No, I it doesn't."

"So it is an unfriendly feud and somewhat of a rivalry for your sister's loyalty. Rose will never win that fight, but she doesn't trust you."

"Essentially," he answered dismissively.

I got that he didn't much care what Rosalie's opinions were. To him, she was inconsequential. An annoyance. She was a bone of contention in conversation, but not much else.

"And Royce?" Edward held a breath. I felt his biceps flex around me; a sign of his tension. "He called you by your father's name," I stated pointedly. "You've known him for some time."

"Yes."

"Edward." I looked up, meeting his eyes in a steadfast gaze. "I won't entertain your evasiveness on this subject a third time. Tell me what's really going on."

"That's quite a loaded threat, love."

"Sound familiar?" I replied caustically. It should, I pulled the words right out of Edward's vocabulary. "I distinctly remember being threatened with forced captivity and marriage for my unwillingness to be honest with you."

"And I absolutely recall that you'd still withheld information from me, Bella." His tone took on a stern warning. True, I hadn't divulged everything that night. I couldn't have. I had, however, told him as much as I was able while still protecting my brothers.

"Please, Edward. He threatened you." Edward scoffed, rolling his eyes. He'd picked that one up from me. "I don't really give a flying fuck if you want to take him seriously or not. He threatened you, at your home, right in front of me. That makes this my concern. If we have to—"

"What?" He challenged tightly.

"Deal with it," I answered him with cold determination. "Take care of it. Remove the threat."

"You don't know anything about him," Edward replied as he studied my unwavering eyes. "You have no concept of the threads and where they lead, and yet you're prepared to what? All on a few words. Completely undaunted by an unknown adversary."

"I've lived through worse." I stated flatly.

"You have," he agreed softly. Edward cupped my cheek tenderly stroked my skin. "And you are a very dangerous woman, love. But still you're too brave for your own good. I've failed to teach you any caution."

"You deflecting," I accused. "Tell me. Who is he to you? There's obviously a history."

Edward sighed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. For a moment I though he'd shoot me down and refuse to answer. Then, after blowing out of breath, he began to speak.

"Royce was attending Harvard Business School while I was in law school. We met through mutual acquaintances. A few times a month I'd participate in a poker game with some of my classmates; that's where I was first introduced to Royce King, before my father died. He knew me as Edward Masen.

"I'd been working in Manhattan for a little over a year following graduation. One evening, I get a call at the office from Royce. He's short on details, but explains that he needs legal advice and came to me because he trusts me. We're Harvard men. All that old alumni bullshit. Fact was Royce had money but not connections. His father went to prison on fraud and embezzlement charges a year prior. It was well enough to play cards with the man, but he had the stink of scandal on him, and no one in a position of power or influence would touch him. He came to me because he hoped I'd be sympathetic to his circumstances, given my father's suicide."

"So he was in some kind of legal trouble."

"Yes," he answered grimly.

"What happened?"

"I can't tell you," he reiterated for the umpteenth time.

"Can't or won't?"

"I'm bound by attorney-client confidentiality, a non-disclosure from my former law firm, and an NDA with King Consolidated."

Stunned, I sat up on my knees to gawk at Edward. "You let a sniveling little shit like Royce King get you by the balls? I don't buy that for a second. That's bullshit. Fuck attorney-client privilege. The Bar Association of New York or Massachusetts is not in this room. Tell me how that man got you under his thumb."

I was seething and furious. Edward bowed down for no one. He never allowed another person to dictate terms or exact authority over his will. In all things, Edward was dominant and in control. I admired that about him, respected him for it. It was, among many other traits, something I loved and gravitated toward. In that way, he was very similar to Emmett and Jasper.

Emmett's intimidating size afforded him latitude. Jasper carried himself with the sort of quiet confidence that spoke silently but was unmistakable. I'd learned a great deal from both of my brothers and had used their protective wings as shelter in the instances where I'd doubted my own confidence. Through them, I'd come into my own and learned to project independence.

"Answer me," I demanded impatiently. "Or I will go digging in the crevices." The threat was poignant and underhanded. I knew that. Edward had been infinitely patient with my reluctance to bare my secrets. He hadn't pried into my past behind my back. But this? Anything that had forced Edward into a corner terrified me.

Edward narrowed his gaze in adversarial challenge. His jaw tensed and tightened as he stared at me, resolved and unmovable. "I will not be coerced with ultimatums, Bella. You very well know that."

"Do I? Royce seems to have done so quite easily. Perhaps I've not been pushing the right buttons. I consider myself to be rather crafty, Edward. But, if you like, don't consider it an ultimatum. It is just a statement of fact. Cause A will instigate Effect B. Simple as that."

"Watch your tongue, love. Or I will have that pretty ass over my knee until you've gained an appreciation for the consequences of your impudence."

"You wouldn't dare," I growled through clenched teeth.

Recognition flickered in Edward's widening eyes, followed by a surprised flinch. "No, Bella, I wouldn't. Not ever. That's not what I meant." He sighed, frowning as he waited a moment. "We need to stop this. We're taking jabs at each other and it will only end badly. That's not my intent, angel."

Edward ran his hand up the side of my neck and into my hair, gently pulling me down until I was curled in his lap with my face resting in the crook of his neck.

"Royce was in some legal trouble, yes. I wasn't in a position to take on his case alone. My firm had given me greater responsibility than most junior attorneys, but not so much as to defend him without a senior attorney overseeing the case. Regardless, his problem was not within my area of concentration. I referred him to another attorney within the firm, with the promise that I'd be available to advise him in a less official capacity. It was a good opportunity for me," Edward explained regretfully. "It would be a long and involved process, which translated to a high volume of billable hours. Junior lawyers rarely brought it high-priced clients. I moved up quickly as a result."

"So if you weren't involved in the case, how do you end up under a gag?"

"It wasn't the case. My problems with Royce grew out of that one favor. We saw each other regularly in New York. Not socially, but he sought my legal advice on various financial and business-related matters while he worked to lay the foundation for what would become his enterprise."

I gave Edward a quizzical look, not seeing how the pieces fit together. "It was a small startup at the time, plenty of capital but nowhere to put it. What matters most is not funding, but funding from the right people. He could have used all of his own money, but Royce needed the right names attached to his endeavor for it to succeed and to be taken seriously. I knew those people, associates of my father."

"But what? Something went wrong?" Edward stared at me silently, refusing to answer. A thought occurred me, one I'd forgotten about after Jasper's casual question. "Why hasn't Royce sent the police over here to arrest you? He's obviously a spiteful bastard, so why not see you hauled out in handcuffs for assault and battery?"

"He can't," Edward answered confidently. "If Royce King pulls me into court on criminal charges, I'm freed from confidentiality. Hell, even if he sues me, I'm out from under the NDA. Those contracts are a nuclear deterrent. He won't enforce them because he doesn't want the information I have on him to be made public. I haven't broken the agreements because—"

"He's blackmailing you," I answered in astonishment. "A secret for a secret. Edward, whatever it is he's threatened you with, I know it isn't true. You can tell me."

"I won't have you involved, Bella." Edward's tone was hard with finality. "And I won't discuss it further. You'll stay out of this matter." His grim expression was hard and determined, issuing a demand. "You won't go poking around where you ought not to wander. That's the last word on the subject."


	20. Chapter 20

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

**A/N: **I haven't been much in the mood to write this week, as you might well imagine. I sincerely hope that none of you have been directly impacted by the events in Boston. It is a terrific city with wonderful people, and I hope to return again soon. The people of Boston are in my thoughts, and I encourage anyone who wishes to help to donate to The One Fund Boston at **TheOneFundBoston dot org. **

* * *

Edward had issued a command in typical fashion. Ordinarily, his penchant for ordering me around, and my stubborn inclination toward defiance, would have resulted in a lengthy standoff. This occasion was not the first nor would it be the last time we butted heads on a matter of significance. It was, however, the first time Edward had attempted to hide something about himself from me.

Since our first conversation over breakfast, he had insisted his life was open for my perusal. He'd claimed he wanted me to know him. Now, so many months later, I believed I did. So his refusal to let me in and understand the predicament at hand had me less angry and more nervous.

In light of the day's events, I instituted a strategic retreat. Today was not the time to further test the limits of his patience and calm. As a result, I allowed him to assume the matter closed—really Edward had to know better than to think I'd relent so easily—and coax me against his body as we took a nap before dinner. Time to let the information simmer would be useful. Whatever Royce King had over Edward, I needed to gain perspective and approach the topic from the right angle.

A few hours later, Edward stirred in bed. He'd somehow managed to lay his body almost entirely over mine, blanketing me in warm flesh and hard muscles. Whether he was entirely awake yet or not, his chin lifted slightly and he nuzzled his nose against my neck and his lips idly kissed along the soft column. Edward was also heavy and damn near suffocating me. When I took in a deep inhalation to expand my lugs, filling my nostrils with his fresh scent, he got the message and shifted to his side. Edward wrapped his free arm around my stomach and drew me closer against him.

"You awake?" I lightly combed my fingers through is hair, watching as his closed eyelids fluttered. Edward always looked so peaceful when he slept.

"No," he answered through heavy lips that nearly refused to open past the single syllable. His arm constricted tighter around me while he slid his leg between my thighs.

"You're a little awake," I chuckled as I felt his erection pressing against my hip.

"Randy bastard is always awake when you're here." With his eyes still closed, Edward nestled his face against my shoulder, humming contentedly as his lips delicately caressed my collarbone.

"Want me to do something about it?" I slid my hand down Edward's arm and between us, over the hard plane of his stomach. He groaned deeply as I held his stiff cock in my hand, gently running my fingertips over the wide head.

"Bella," he breathed my name softly. Edward hitched my knee up around his hip, pulling me flush against his length until my hand was tightly wedged between us. He opened his eyes. Two heavily lidded green jewels stared at me as if he hadn't been witness to me lying next to him in months. "Why are you so good to me?"

The serious question uttered so gently surprised me. Edward cradled my cheek in his large palm and spread his fingers through my hair while waiting in silent anticipation of an answer.

"Baby," I responded somewhat dazedly, "that's a dumb question."

"I don't think so."

"Edward." My brow furrowed. I scanned the relaxed set of his features, searching for what might have brought this on. "I love you," I reiterated with conviction. "How else would I treat you?"

"You're entirely too sweet."

"I've never been accused of any such thing," I remarked with a wry smile. "But I guess you just bring it out of me." I kissed him lightly on the lips and then again under the corner of his jaw. "And you've only ever gone out of your way to care for me. I think that deserves certain kindness in return."

"Anything, angel. Anything you could ever possibly ask of me is yours."

"I know, baby," I told him reassuringly. I never asked much. I really didn't require much maintenance at all. But if the mood ever struck, Edward would rearrange the continental shelf to fit my desire.

"Move in with me," Edward pressed once again. "Please, love."

I dragged my hand from his swollen cock and slid my flat palm up the muscles of his stomach and chest until I felt the rapid beat of his heart increasing. "Why is this so important to you? We practically live together as it is. At most we're talking about a change of address on my driver's license." Actually, I hadn't gotten around to changing it since leaving Florida in the first place. Bad Bella.

Edward didn't answer right away. His heart rushed under my palm. Was he nervous? After a moment, his expression shifted from casual relaxation to flat honesty.

"I need more. I need you leaving piles of laundry on the floor of our bedroom, not packing things back into that damn duffle bag to wash at the house. I need you to leave girly crap in our bathroom drawers and not living out of a toiletry bag. I need to have more than one meal at home alone with you every week."

I took a moment to absorb his statement. Looking back at my habits over the last few months, I realized he was right. I constantly treated the condo like a hotel. The only clothes in the closet or drawers were those that Alice had gifted me from her overflowing collection. Edward had initially stocked the bathroom with my usual products when he first surprised me with the penthouse. Since then, I'd been shuttling shampoo and the like between both residences.

"What is it that you really want?" I asked as I tenderly ran my fingers across his shoulder and upper arm. "I can make a bigger mess and start leaving things at the condo, but I don't think that is the real underlying need."

Edward seemed to deliberate for a moment. "You," he stated firmly. "All of you. Nothing less than I stated the night you agreed to go home with me. I've tried to be patient, but I'm clawing out of my skin to have you bound to me. Unless you'd entertain ring shopping…"

"Edward," I warned him immediately. He put on a knowing smirk and slid his hand down to cup my ass, squeezing lightly.

"Move in with me," he demanded gently. "Give me a good reason why what I'm asking is so horrible."

"It isn't horrible," I was quick to assure him. He raised an eyebrow, challenging me to offer any logical answer. He did have a point. So what was stopping me from accepting his invitation?

For one, I worried what Emmett and Jasper might think. They knew Edward, they liked him, but my past was probably a great reason for not rushing to hit every relationship milestone too quickly. Jasper would absolutely think I was moving too quickly.

Secondly, I hated the idea of appearing ungrateful that my brothers had welcomed me home with open arms and a warm bed. Emmett had made it clear that he wasn't a big fan of the idea of me moving out when Edward had first bought the condo. I hadn't been home for an entire year and already I was entertaining the idea of shaking up with the new boyfriend. That wasn't normal.

Then again, we had never pretended to be normal. I certainly didn't crave space or independence from Edward. I had no such hang-ups like feeling suffocated or taken over by him. Every minute we weren't in the same room together was infinitely less interesting. We spent as much time together as two people could without following each other to the toilet.

The fact was, everything was different now. Mike was just a memory. Paul was gone. James was dead. All the reasons I'd run in the first place were nicely taken care of. When I'd first come home, I'd told Jasper that my stay was just temporary. All of that changed. What possible reason did I have for letting my life remain on pause? Edward had helped me stuff my old troubles into box and close the lid tightly. So what was the point in delaying any longer in pursuing what I wanted?

None at all.

Meeting Edward's expectant gaze, I bit my lip to hide the silly grin trying to tug at the corner of my mouth. "Okay," I answered shyly.

"Okay?" A slow smile spread triumphantly across his lovely lips.

"I'll move in with you."

I had an odd mixture of both relief and apprehension as I gave my consent. With Edward, nothing was ever so easy as a simple yes or no. There were always hidden strings attached. Not in a bad way, no. Nevertheless, I had the feeling that gaining my acquiescence to his wish would have as yet unknown consequences.

Edward kissed me, sweetly at first, and then grew more forceful. He rolled us over so that he covered my body with his, prying my thighs open to accommodate his hips. Tugging my bottom lip between his teeth, he hovered over me, breathing deeply.

"Say it again," he said breathlessly.

"I'll move in with you," I chuckled. "I'll be a complete slob and toss my dirty clothes all over the bedroom. I'll crowd your side of the counter with all sorts of bottles and junk. I'll even leave wet towels on the bed."

"Perfect," he answered with a relieved smile.

Edward positioned himself at my entrance, pushing in without all the usual teasing and foreplay. I wrapped my legs tightly around his hips, whimpering as he stretched and filled me, his thick cock penetrating me so blissfully. Edward buried his face at my shoulder as he sank deeper, so thoroughly embedding himself that I felt him nudging my cervix.

"Edward," I moaned, my legs latched tightly around his back as if I could possible pull him further inside my body.

"I know, love." He remained seated inside me, throbbing and hard, while his lips reverently explored my neck and then down to wrap around one nipple. "We're going to be very late for dinner."


	21. Chapter 21

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

* * *

Under a black sky, enveloped in a halo of warm candlelight, Edward and I reclined on a chaise. From the back deck of the Cullens' house, we delved into the bohemian adventures of the Beat generation. While Edward read aloud from Jack Kerouac's _The Dharma Burns_, I couldn't help but relive my own aimless misadventures.

As trite and cliché as it is, how much can a person really know about herself until she's ordered a beer in five languages, bedded men on four continents, and driven on the wrong side of the road? I'd been robbed, almost arrested, in a bar fight, slept on the beach because I hadn't had a room for the night, and accepted a ride from a complete stranger because he had kind eyes. And in the same storyline, I'd dived the Great Barrier Reef, chased cats through the Colosseum, witnessed the sunrise at Stonehenge, and crossed the Equator by land, sea, and air.

Inevitably, my thoughts wandered to London. The smell of the little hole-in-the-wall pub where I'd first heard the alluring tone of Demetri's voice was still fresh in my memory. I recalled the scents of earl grey tea, hops and barley, malt whisky, and clove smoke. The way my bare forearms stuck to the weathered wood of the bar, tugging the skin as I peeled myself away to approach him. The three of us sleeping on trains after a gig, my ears ringing from the guitar amps, were memories that felt like they'd happened to someone else.

Given the abrupt way in which I'd determined to come home, it was easy to dismiss my time with Demetri and Felix as a convenient distraction that killed time between one city and the next. In truth, I'd had fun. I had enjoyed traipsing across Great Britain, playing a gig in a new venue to a different crowd every night. I'd seen the underside of the indie British music scene few American musicians would ever know.

And, looking back, Demetri didn't deserve the dramatic manner in which I'd left him standing on a curb in the middle of the night, without a lead guitarist. He was no great love of my life, I knew. In fact, beyond companionship, I had very few emotions toward him at all. Demetri was…bad for me, but exactly right for that moment in time. He had never mistreated me, not at all. Our flame of carnal attraction had burned hot and fierce, which meant it was only a matter of time before the affair exploded in fantastic fashion.

For six months Dem had cultivated my confidence on stage, encouraged me. He'd run interference when some dirtbag at a bar got too handsy, tracked down the only pharmacy open at 4:00 in the morning when I caught a nasty stomach bug, and never once asked me about my past after the one occasion I'd deflected the topic. Demetri had been kind to me, considerate. Best of all, he'd injected a fresh dose of energy and excitement into my life at a time when I thought the real me had been deteriorating with every month I'd spent away from home. No, I wasn't Bella while I was in London, but I stopped walking around like a shell of a person with that haunted look in her eyes.

"You're deep in thought," Edward murmured against my temple. He closed the book, laying it to the side. I was resting with my back against his chest and, in fact, not paying any attention to Jack's prose.

"Sorry." I hugged Edward's arms around my stomach. "I was just remembering."

"Care to elaborate?"

"I miss traveling," I answered, purposefully avoiding the most recent direction of my thoughts.

I didn't miss Demetri. It wasn't as though I had some nagging need to look him up and hear all about what a shitty thing I'd done in leaving him high and dry two days before a gig. Looking back on that particular night brought on guilt that I would rather not indulge. And strangely, in the same 24-hour span, I'd met Edward. If a horridly awkward moment—running from a hotel room in the middle of the night like I was escaping a kidnapper—was what it took to get my ass back to Florida in time for that introduction, it was all worth it.

"Say the word, love, and we'll be on a flight to anywhere in the world. Just name it."

Hell, I couldn't help but smile and kiss Edward for that. No, I wouldn't drag us from Boston because I had an itch, but the thought was appreciated. "You just want a reason to leave town."

"I have dozens of reasons to leave," he reminded me. "Once the will has been read, I'd like us to return home."

"I've got bags to pack and boxes to move," I reminded him with a grin. The happiness that overcame Edward's expression reinforced my belief that moving in with him was the right decision.

"You haven't spoken much about your time abroad," Edward prodded gently.

He was right; I rarely mentioned more than interesting sites and cities. People and particular activities were never offered up in conversation. The few bits and pieces of Demetri and the band that Jasper and Emmett had managed to squeeze from me were the only tidbits I'd divulged. Edward knew even less than that.

"Not a topic I'm interested in." I sat up, tossing aside the blanket wrapped around our legs. I picked up our two long-discarded wine glasses, finding an excuse to effectively shut down the conversation. "Another?" Edward nodded, letting me off the hook.

After a delicious meal and far too many embarrassing stories staring Bella, as told by Emmett with a mouth full of pot roast, Carlisle and Esme had excused themselves for the night. Not long after, Alice hatched a plan to hit a pub downtown. Perhaps she felt obligated to entertain Emmett—he'd only come to Boston in a show of support for his friends, but was obviously the fifth wheel. More likely, Alice needed the distraction. Sitting around the house only invited dwelling on the reason we were here.

It was just past midnight, still early by our usual standards, when I heard a commotion bust through the front door. I abandoned the wine on the kitchen counter when I heard Rosalie Hale's raised voice carry from the living room.

"Alice, stop petting me with napkins. I don't give a damn about the dress."

"What kind of dickless pansy tosses a drink on a woman?" Emmett's voice was angry, seething.

"You started it," Rose snapped back. I came around the corner from the kitchen into the expansive living room in time to see Rosalie throw, and I mean really hurl, her stiletto pumps at the front door—a good forty feet away on the other end of the foyer. They crashed and clattered to the ground. "God, I'm going to kill him."

Jasper was the first to notice my approach, dragging his attention from the door to me, a look of exasperation darkening his features.

"To hell with him," Alice answered sharply. "He's lucky you didn't let me call the cops."

"I don't need the headache," Rosalie sighed, looking down at the large stain on her sophisticated cream cocktail dress. At least the stain looked to be only beer or maybe white wine.

"What happened?" I came to stand next to Jasper, who had given the women a wide berth. Emmett, on the other hand, clearly didn't know any better.

"Great," Rosalie hissed sarcastically. "You're still here."

"Rose, stop it." Alice gave me an apologetic smile after chastising her friend—no love lost between Rose and I. "Royce showed up at the bar and made a scene. They got into an argument and—"

"That nutless fuck attacked her," Emmett interjected. His shoulders were bunched, his biceps flexing. Emm was rarely brought to so much anger that he'd be violent, but a man putting his uninvited paws on a woman was a quick way to meet his bad side.

I looked to Alice and then Jasper for clarification. Other than the stain, Rosalie didn't look like she'd been harmed.

"He grabbed her," Jasper answered calmly. "She shoved him, he said and few choice words and tossed his drink in her face."

"And then your pit bull broke his nose!" Rosalie sent a withering glare at Emmett, who couldn't have looked more proud as he smiled to me.

"Nah, I think Edward broke the nose. I just mangled it a little more." He crossed his arms, casually leaning against the back of the couch.

"No one asked you to jump in the middle of it. For that matter," Rosalie snapped, "the whole thing was your fault."

"How's that, exactly?" Again, I looked to Jasper for a rational answer. He shook his head slightly, communicating Rose's exaggeration.

"Emm was standing next to her at the bar, that's it. The guy was drunk and looking for a fight." Jasper smirked, eyeing Emmett. "Emm didn't want to disappoint him."

"He was staring at my chest all night." As if just remembering that she had tits, Rose crossed her arms over her chest. Please, Emmett wasn't about to haul her over his shoulder and maul her. He usually waited until at least the third date for that. I couldn't help but give me brother a knowing grin. "You're crude, crass, and…" Seething with impotent anger, Rose just growled. "I'm so far out of your league—"

"Rose!"

"Hey!" That did it. I'd have the bitch on the floor, a busted nose to match her asshat fiancé's mangled face. "You should be so goddamn lucky." I stood within an inch of Rosalie, pointing a rigid finger to her sternum. "That asshole you were going to marry isn't worthy to scrape chum of my brother's shoes. A shrill little harpy like you should be flattered and grateful that a kind, gracious, amazing man like Emmett would even glance in your direction."

"Aww, Bells, I'm touched." Nothing ever got to Emmett; he could be three men deep in a severe ass kicking and still crack jokes. Nevertheless, I was furious and too preoccupied with trying not to knock Alice's friend to the floor.

"Bella, please—" I ignored Alice's protest, my shoulders tensing for a fight.

Rosalie swatted my hand away, murder in her eyes and blood reddening her cheeks as she fumed. "You're pathetic, you know that? You—"

Alice jumped in to move Rosalie back the same moment Jasper put his arm around my shoulder and tugged me away. He knew I was an inch from slugging her.

"Not another word." All attention snapped to the open glass door to the back deck. Edward stood there furious and rigid. His eyes didn't meet mine. Instead, they cut through the room to lash at Rosalie. "Get out," he demanded in an ominously calm and low voice.

"Edward, please." Alice moved a few steps closer to him, but the sharpness with which he shifted his gaze to her stopped her dead. "She's just upset and—"

"I've tolerated you long enough," he spoke to Rosalie. "You may disparage me, I've earned it, but you will not poison my family."

"Poison? What about Alice? These are the people you subject her to? I'd say you should be ashamed of yourself, but you'd have to possess a soul to feel shame."

"Enough!" Alice straightened her slight frame, darting in front of Rosalie. "Rose," she looked sympathetically at her friend, but no less determined. "I understand that you've had a rotten day. What Royce did this morning, and tonight at the bar, was awful. I'm truly sorry. But Edward's right; this is my family. I love them." Jasper moved to her side, taking her hand in a show of solidarity. "And either you can accept that, be happy for me, or you can leave."

"She is leaving." Edward strode across the room to wrap his arm around me protectively, pulling both us next to Jasper as Emmett followed suit. "And if you ever wish to be welcome in my home again, you'll devise a suitable apology." He turned his attention to Alice, generally ignoring Rosalie's defeated expression. "See her out," he ordered gently.


	22. Chapter 22

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

* * *

After Alice had sent Rosalie home, she and Edward had excused themselves to the library to speak privately while the rest of us got ready for bed. In a very rare moment, Edward had hugged Jasper—in a very manly way, of course—and thanked him for taking care of his sister. I saw the fear and anger concealed behind Edward's rigid expression. He didn't like the thought of Alice being anywhere near Royce, and certainly not while Edward was absent. Jasper had shifted his eyes to me, lingering there, and nodded in acceptance.

"She needs to get a restraining order on that piece of shit," Emmett grumbled. We now sat at the foot of the bed in his guestroom on the second floor, Jasper leaning against the dresser with his arms crossed over his chest. "I guarantee that asshole won't just leave her alone after tonight."

"She's not our problem," Jasper remarked, reminding Emmett that we were unwelcome interlopers into her personal affairs. "So long as Alice isn't getting dragged into it, I could care less."

Jasper didn't mean that. He averted his eyes from mine, staring blankly at the far wall with an impassive expression. The truth was, Rosalie didn't want our help; she'd made that abundantly clear. Rather than fighting a losing battle, Jasper would attend to the things he could control: caring for his family and protecting Alice. All other concerns were secondary. Soon, we'd be home, leaving Boston to fend for itself.

"What really happened? How did Royce even know where to find you?" I sat back on the bed, briefly noticing the redness of Emmett's knuckles. I'd liked to have been there when Emmett put that bastard in his place.

"We were at the bar, just the three of us, when Alice got a text from Rosalie saying that she'd told her parents that she was calling off the wedding. Apparently the dad took it surprisingly well, but her mother went ballistic. Rose needed to get out, so Alice invited her to join us."

"No way she told Royce where she was going," Emmett cut in. "He had to be following her."

"When he showed up, the two of them got into a screaming match. She tossed her ring across the room—" I raised my eyebrows in surprise. Rose had been sporting a huge rock. "Yeah," Jasper nodded in agreement to my reaction. "Royce grabbed her arm and yanked her away from the bar. He was drunk off his ass and livid as hell, obviously. She shoved him pretty good. Emmett and I stepped in, but by that point they two of them were kicking up a fuss and the bouncer was on his way over. Royce said some pretty nasty shit and tossed his beer in her face—"

"And the next thing he knew his face was on the floor." Emmett was scowling at the wall, clearly still wound up. "Motherfucker."

"It isn't nice to hit," I told him playfully as I sat up on my knees and shifted behind Emmett. I pressed my thumbs into the tense muscles of his bulky shoulders. Emmett immediately groaned and lowered his head, practically purring while I massaged him. "But I'm proud of you for sticking up for her."

Emmett snorted and Jasper gave me a sarcastic look. "Yeah, she's a royal bitch. I was damn close to decking her after what she said about you, Emm. But just the same, that man needs to learn to keep his grubby hands to himself."

"I take it Rose and Edward have a history?" Jasper settled his anticipatory gaze on me again.

"The three of them grew up together in the same private schools. Alice and Rose have been friends since they were kids, but she and Edward loathe each other. I'm sure Rose thinks that Edward started all of this just to piss her off. Because, obviously, he has nothing better to do that meddle in her affairs."

"Uh, damn, easy, Bella." Emmett winced under the pressure of my kneading hands.

"Sorry." I kissed the top of his head, softening my grip. I'd come to empathize with Edward's hatred for the blonde irritant. In such a short while, she'd already managed to inspire all sorts of frustration within me. "Although, admittedly, he does have it out for Royce."

"And he still won't tell you why? I've talked to Alice, but she doesn't know much of anything." Jasper was getting that look about him; the one that signaled his mind was busy calculating threats and appropriate responses. Normal people didn't live with such justified paranoia on a daily basis.

"He gave me a partial backstory," I sighed, concentrating on not strangling Emmett while I worked on the knots in his shoulders. "They knew each other at Harvard. After Edward started working in New York, Royce came to him with a legal problem. I guess Edward's firm represented him, but I don't know what kind of case it was. Long story short, something happened between them later and Edward is under all sorts of gag orders to keep it secret. He won't tell me," I conceded in annoyance. "He got pretty bend out of shape when I pressed the issue."

"I'd like to repeat that I don't think this guy is going away," Emmett muttered in a deep, relaxed voice. He was so easy to tame.

Jasper and I held a long, meaningful stare. We'd made that mistake once before; assuming a bother would simply take the hint and slink back under a rock. In our experience, that had never happened. We had learned to be vigilant and expect the worse. And for that reason, Emmett was right. We couldn't assume that Royce would just sulk and accept Edward had taken his company, his fiancé, and his dignity.

"So fill me in," Emmett stated as he lifted his head and gave me a quick kiss to my forehead. I moved to sit next to him on the end of the bed, watching Jasper. "What's our move?"

Jasper ran his hands over his face, exhaling deeply. When he looked up, his mask of firm resolve was in place once more. "They're reading the will tomorrow. I don't think Alice wants to stay any longer than that."

"Edward can't wait to get out of here," I agreed.

"So we'll head home soon," Jasper nodded.

"The contract came in from Robert before I flew up here," Emmett informed us. "They're setting him up for another title fight. Bob has him slated for three fights in four months so that Edward can get the wins under his belt in time to qualify for title contention at the December event." Jasper raised an eyebrow, impressed. Emmett shrugged. "Our boy is a cash cow for tickets and pay-per-view. I'm not even going to bother trying to convince Edward that the schedule is too short. He'll take the fights and damn the short turnaround." He was absolutely right about that.

"That works out for us," Jasper agreed without argument. "We go home, hunker down, get Edward focused on training, and in the meantime…" He sent a loaded glance in my direction.

"I dig around and find out what Royce is so afraid of."

xXx

After breakfast the next morning, Alice and Edward met with the Howard Powell, the family attorney, in Carlisle's study. Jasper and Emmett went for run, and Esme drove downtown to drop off a few boxes of Elizabeth's clothes and other items that she intended to donate to a women's shelter. I'd offered to go with her, but she insisted she didn't need the help. Truthfully, I suspected that he didn't want Edward to emerge from the meeting to find me absent.

I was not looking forward to his shattered mood once that chore had been carried out. As we went to bed last night, Edward was rigid and distant. He allowed me to curl up against his chest as was typical, but he'd barely said an entire sentence before turning out the light and closing his eyes. I knew full well that he was awake most of the night. He'd warned me his mood would suffer on this trip, so I kept my mouth shut and just endured the silence. Breakfast was stilted, tense, and also very quiet.

Left to my own devices, I wandered into the library with the Jack Kerouac novel that Edward and I had started last night. I was curled up in a leather club chair by the large picture window when Carlisle entered. He'd made it within three feet of me before I glanced up and noticed him observing me patiently.

"Carlisle, hi. I hope you don't mind—" I sat up, moving the blanket off my legs and righting myself in the chair. I'd been sprawled out with my legs over the arm. The chair had probably cost more than… well, a lot.

"Do you mind if I join you?" He smiled kindly, indicating to the other chair that framed the window.

"It's your house," I answered brightly. "But I'd be happy if you did."

Carlisle and I had spoken many times on the phone over the last few months. At first, I was nervous and felt awkward about conversing with Edward's family. I'd always gotten along great with Emmett and Jasper's parents, but I'd also known them since I was a kid. Over time, however, Carlisle and I had developed an easy rapport. Rather than being the overly serious and stuffy doctor I'd imagined, Carlisle was gentle, friendly, and amazingly understood my sense of humor.

"I'm sure my nephew would consider it a sin, but I've never actually read Kerouac," Carlisle nodded at the book in my hands. "I have his entire catalogue, I admit, only because I felt he should be represented on the shelves." He gave me a sly smirk that was vaguely like one I often observed on Edward's lips. They shared no physical similarities, obviously, but maybe a few innocuous mannerisms. "That's incredibly pretentious, isn't it?"

"Remarkably pompous, Carlisle. I'm so very disappointed." I affected an admonishing scowl, to which he softly laughed and rested back in the club chair opposite me. I didn't miss, however, that he was gently breaking the ice with self-deprecating humor. I was really in for it.

"I think I see the wheels spinning, Bella. I'll come out with it then." Carlisle crossed one leg casually over the other, leaning forward slightly as he fixed his sincere blue eyes on me. "I wanted to see if you'd talk to me about how you've been coping since the events in Atlantic City."

Damn him. Seriously, just damn that man. With Emmett or Jasper—even Edward—I'd toss out a snide remark or funny quip and sidestep the topic altogether. I could not, however, treat Carlisle in my usual way. For one thing, he wasn't my peer. I had enough respect to understand that. He was pinning me down, and Carlisle knew that.

"I'm good," I half lied. I went with optimism. After all, I wasn't drowning in a bottle or picking fights in bars. The nightmares were at a minimum, which I took as a good sign. Carlisle didn't need to know that I slept with a knife. Even now, the implement was safely tucked in my back pocket.

Carlisle regarded me with an unsatisfied expression. It would take more than that to break me. "Bella, I understand your instinct to conceal your emotions. Really, I do," he added when my expression remained flat. "I was not permitted to see Edward and Alice during much of their upbringing. Edward's father despised me. The feeling was mutual."

Carlise's genial tone took on an edge of bitterness, an emotion I shared where either of Edward's parents were concerned. "But I was a witness to the aftermath. My sister suffered greatly from depression and post-traumatic stress. As you're well aware, Edward has endured similar personal torment. After his father's death…"

His voice trailed off as he looked out the window to the front yard cast in luminous sunlight. He was silent for a long moment, staring out at something or nothing in particular. I recalled Edward's mention that, for a time, he and Carlisle had shared a tenuous relationship at the best of times and an outright hostile one in the worst. Edward had taken full responsibility for that and had since sought to repair their bond. Nevertheless, the toll taken on his uncle was clear in the sorrowful tilt to his lips.

"You've been very good for Edward; that much is quite obvious. He adores you, and I see that the affection is reciprocated. Honestly," Carlisle returned his attention to me, "I cannot properly express how happy I am that he's found love with such a kind and generous woman."

I dropped my eyes from his, concentrating on the book in my hands as though Jack held any great insight to help me through his particular conversation. Jack's characters would have long ago forgone this discussion for a round of shots, a joint, and a good fuck. Better yet, they wouldn't have been in this house to begin with.

I'd rarely been described as kind or generous. Abrasive, impatient, petulant, aggressive—plenty of other words had been tossed in my direction. Carlisle saw me through a parental lens because I'd always been on my best behavior when we spoke. I was no white angel cast down to save Edward's soul. As far as I was concerned, he didn't need saving. He just needed someone to love him, be gentle with him at times, and to feed his insatiable appetite for pleasure; that, at the very least, I knew how to do.

"I need you to understand, however, how easily one who has endured trauma can succumb to debilitating and destructive tendencies. You're a very strong woman, Bella; that is without question. I have just seen too much, to many lives destroyed, to not care about your well-being. For you, Bella, and for my nephew."

So that was a crux of it; Carlisle was concerned that I'd sidetrack Edward's recovery. For a moment, I felt an angry surge heat my blood. My reflex was to take his comments as threatening. Edward was mine, and whether I moved on as a well-adjusted survivor or despaired into a dark oblivion, I wouldn't release my claim on the man I'd endured too many trials with.

But I regained my rational mind quickly. Carlisle, the kind and gentle man that he was, only carried sincere affection and concern for him family. I knew Edward better than to think a dissuading comment or cautionary word from anyone would change his will. We were both entirely too stubborn. And for better or worse, we'd tossed our lots in with each other.

If it was ours to descend into the many rings of hell, we were going down together. Above all, I understood Edward's aversion to abandonment. Perhaps, for the first time with true contextual clarity, I finally grasped Edward's love for me; he'd given himself to me, fully, and that commitment included basking in the light and toiling in darkness. We'd be damned or saved together.

"I have nightmares," I admitted quietly. "I had them after the first time. Eventually, they became less frequent." After the incident in Atlantic City, Edward had told Carlisle about Mike's first attack. He knew no more than that, and he never would, but I'd given Edward permission to disclose the fact when Carlisle had questioned Edward after seeing rumors pop up in the media. "It isn't every night. Sometimes I can go weeks without having one, but they're always the same. I dream about him choking me the feeling of being restrained, helpless. That is the part I have the most trouble with," I explained without making eye contact. "I was tied down to the bed and, in my nightmare, I can't get my hand free for the knife."

"I drank a lot when we first got back," I went on. The floodgates has been opened, and now the confessions begged to be made. "Edward didn't tell you, but we had a fight about that. He accused me of being an alcoholic and threatened to go to absurd lengths to have be placed in rehab." I suddenly snapped my eyes to Carlisle's when I heard him shift in his seat. Quickly, I endeavored to explain. "I'm not, Carlisle. I promise you. I know that is a very raw trigger for Edward, so I made a deal with him. I was sober for thirty straight days to prove to him that I didn't need it."

Carlisle nodded, satisfied. He probably knew as well as I did that yes, Edward would have gone to extraordinary trouble to have me treated. If all else failed, he would have made good on his promise to kidnap me away somewhere to detox while he sat on me if he had to.

"I guess the worst of it isn't depression, it's anger. I'm furious, and that just isn't going away. I work out at the gym and beat the shit out of a punching bag." I smiled a little, holding up the backs of my hands for Carlisle, showing him that they were now perpetually a little swollen around the knuckles. "Sometimes, if that doesn't cut it, Jasper and I go a few rounds on the mat. The mission has basically been to wear me out."

"And with Edward?"

"He keeps me together," I smiled a more genuine, happy grin. "We tiff sometimes, like any couple." I laughed, shaking my head. "Okay, not like any couple. We're very similar. Sometimes that means a wicked argument, but we make up just as fast. Really, it is less about either of us being angry with the other, but more to do with expelling frustration. More than anything, he makes me feel safe, protected, and completely invincible. I probably wouldn't be sleeping at all if not for him."

Again I raised my eyes to Carlisle's, settling an earnest gaze on his attentive expression. "I love him with all my heart. He's everything to me, and sometimes that's terrifying. He gives me strength, even when I think mine is running out."

Carlisle silently absorbed my rant, pausing for a moment as he waited to see if I would continue. I took a deep breath, rubbing my eyes and slouching back into the chair. I pulled the blanket around my legs again, suddenly feeling a little cold and emotionally spent.

"Angel?"

I looked to the doorway of the library. Edward stood a pair of dark grey dress pants and a crisp white shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He'd made a half-hearted attempt at looking professional for the reading of the will, but had gotten fed up with the pretention of business attire before completing the look. Edward had been edgy and agitated all morning before locking himself in the study to put to rest the last bits of his mother's legacy. I didn't understand why Carlisle hadn't gone in there with them to meet with the lawyer, except maybe he'd been left out of the will entirely.

"Am I interrupting?" Despite the question, he crossed the room confidently and then sat on the armrest of my chair. Without sparing a moment to address Carlisle, Edward tenderly cupped my cheek and his eyes roamed over me. "What's wrong?"

"I'm okay," I assured him as I leaned into his warm palm. "We were just talking. You're not interrupting."

Edward looked to Carlisle, carefully judging his uncle's features before dropping the matter entirely. "Howard just left. I've chartered our flight to Key West for three o'clock."

His features were mostly relaxed, though I saw the remaining concern he held for me. I must have looked worse than I thought.

"Emmett says the contract from Robert came in," I told him, pushing us to a neutral topic. "You're going to be a busy guy."

"Good," he nodded as his lips smile for me. He turned his attention to Carlisle, who was politely looking disinterestedly elsewhere. "I'm sorry to leave you like this, but—"

"No explanation is necessary," Carlisle insisted. He stood, placing his hand affectionately on Edward's shoulder. "You came, despite your reservations. I'm pleased to have had you and your sister here with us. As I understand it, a number of matters are awaiting your attention." He glanced meaningfully at me, smiling, and then embracing Edward. "I love you, Edward. Take care of each other."


	23. Chapter 23

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

**A/N:** You've all been so patient in following along with this story. Now things start to ramp up as drama ensues. Enjoy this quick chapter. And if you'd like to brighten my weekend, send some reviews my way. I love them.

* * *

While the guys unpacked from Boston and Edward excused himself to my room to return phone calls he'd missed from Howard Powell and Robert, I went about preparing dinner. Alice insisted that she couldn't stay once we'd returned to the house after our flight home. Apparently she'd forgone all electronic communication with her real estate clients while we'd been gone, and now she had a full inbox to attend to.

Once I'd chopped a salad and set a dish of rosemary chicken breasts to roast in the oven, I asked Jasper to join me in Emmett's room. Closing the door behind me, I leaned against the wall while the guys watched me take a deep breath to prepare myself. The sooner I got this over with, the sooner my brothers could get used to the idea.

"I'm moving in with Edward," I announced without preamble. Emmett shoved his suitcase to the opposite side of the bed and sat. Jasper adjusted his stance, posturing up for an argument. "He asked me while we were in Boston and I said yes. I didn't want to get into it while we were up there, but I'm telling you now."

I waited, bracing myself.

"Yeah, and?" I looked at Emmett, whose expression was bored.

"Umm…nothing, I guess. That's all." I glanced back at Jasper, expecting him to sigh and lay out all of the reasons why I was moving too fast. His mouth quirked up at one side. "You already knew."

"Alice told me two days ago," he shrugged.

"That girl is scary," I muttered. I knew for a fact that Edward hadn't told her.

"Frankly," Jasper continued, "I'm tired of listening to the two of you go at it. You know I bought headphones because of you."

"Yeah, Bells. You're kinda loud. Not that I'm complaining." Emmett winked at me with a wide grin. "But you wouldn't like the dreams—"

"Okay," I threw my hands up and covered my ears. "Too much information, Emm. Thank you."

"I'm just saying," he continued in a goading voice, "the live-action soundtrack to my wet—"

"Shit, Emm. Enough." Jasper moved to lean against the closet door, wincing at the direction of Emmett's remark.

"I have one demand." Emmett stood and crossed the room to me, a wicked smirk on his lips. Those dimples always meant trouble. "As your biggest brother," he shot a look over at Jasper, "and obviously your favorite, you must comply."

"Name it, Emmy." I smiled eagerly, more because I'd gained their support without a shouting match.

"I want one night, just the three of us, on the town. We're going to rip Duval street a new one."

"I can do that," I agreed. "Absolutely."

"Oh." Emmett snapped his fingers as if he'd just remembered an important fact. "And I want you to make me a cake. A big one. Peanut butter frosting."

"And a cake," I chuckled. "A huge-ass peanut butter and chocolate cake."

"And one more thing," he persisted, his adorable smile brightening further. "I want you to wear something tight and sexy. Preferably black. And the boots. And—"

"You're pressing your luck." I smacked his chest, shoving him. "I'll be your wingwoman, but this doesn't come home with you anymore."

"You'll do what I say and like it," was his retort. Emmett hauled me off the ground, squeezing me in a tight hug and popping my back. I wrapped my arms around his thick neck, hugging him in return. "And this is always going to be your home, Bells. No matter where you spend the night."

When he set me back down on my feet, my eyes were blurry with swelling tears. He was a beast of a man, but Emmett was a softest, most gentle man I'd ever met. He was fiercly protective and unabashedly loving. Really, I didn't know how I'd gotten so lucky as to have his friendship.

"Thank you," I told him earnestly, launching myself at him once more and tightly wrapping my arms around his waist. "I love you, Emm. So much."

"Love you too, babe. I'm happy for you." Emmett rubbed my back, whispering so that only I could hear him. "And he pisses you off, you just call me and I'll straighten his ass out."

"You got it," I laughed against his chest. When we broke apart, I quickly wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, sniffling a little. I turned to Jasper, surveying his mood and waiting. "Jasper, are we good?"

"Don't be stupid," he quipped. In three long strides, Jasper pulled me into his arms and cradled my face. "You have to do what feels right, don't worry about us. Edward loves you, for some reason," he added sarcastically. "It is about time that I let him take over."

"You're such a sorry sap," I half laughed and half cried. "Seriously," I sniffed against his shirt, "grow a pair."

"Damn, you're mouthy." Swiftly, Jasper hauled me over his shoulder and darted out of the bedroom.

I squirmed, laughing as Emmett chased us out to the living room. I was dropped onto the couch and swatted with a throw pillow, which I snatched and chucked at Jasper's head in return. A moment later, before I had calmed my laughter, Emmett appeared above me with a bottle of tequila and four shot glasses.

"It's going to be a long night," he stated in a deep, menacing voice. "Better put on your big-girl pants."

xXx

I hated Emmett the next morning. I loathed him, in fact. I wanted to trample his smug face into the carpet and tap dance on his balls. The man was a devil shipped up from hell to torment me with tiny glasses of delicious liquid. And Jasper, that bastard; he'd sat back and laughed his ass off as I took one shot after another during our game of "Quentin Tarantino or Martin Scorsese." It was a simple game, and one I could dominate sober, in which we quoted lines and then guessed at whose film they were from. Needless to say, my memory faded faster with every shot.

Edward had forgone matching our hand-over-fist consumption. Instead, he sat back with his iPad and played the impartial fact-checker while sipping a Jack and Coke.

"Hey, Boss Lady."

I lifted my head from Emmett's desk to find Tyler standing in the doorway to the office. I groaned at the too-bright lights and gave him a weary wave. Tyler crossed the room and plunked a huge styrofoam cup next to my elbow. I peered at it cautiously. Tyler smiled knowingly at my plight.

"Emmett said you were in a world of hurt. I brought you a hangover smoothie from Lisa's. They're the best, trust me."

I was more than a little dehydrated, but my stomach had been so squeezing, I was repelled by even the notion of drinking water.

"Go on," he urged. "It's banana, mango, strawberry, and some powder shit that is supposed to help."

"How is powered shit supposed to improve my condition?" I scowled at him under heavy lashes.

Tyler chuckled, shaking his head. "It was worth the trip to see Bella hungover. I thought you had a bilge release built in you somewhere."

"I do, it's called a vagina."

He laughed louder as he left the office. After inspecting the smoothie and lifting the plastic lid to take an experimental sniff, I gingerly sucked on the straw. It tasted good. Worried that it might all come back up again, I held the icy liquid in my mouth for a while, trying to trick my stomach into thinking it was actually getting sustenance. Finally, I swallowed and then pushed the smoothie to the side again. Little sips and very far spaced out would have to do for now.

Needless to say, I hadn't gotten much work done during my first morning back at the gym. From what I could hear coming from the main floor, the guys were not suffering nearly as bad. In fact, Emmett had looked pretty damn chipper this morning. Ass. When we went out for our threesome this weekend, I'd have my revenge. No one would go home until Emmett forgot how to spell his own name.

After a few deep, soothing breaths and a serious peptalk with my stomach, I refreshed Emmett's computer and determined to concentrate on productivity. While returning a few emails to the league, I noticed my RSS feed had blown up while I was away from the computer. I opened a new tab, scrolling through mentions of Edward's last fight, his new contract—that news had traveled fast on the MMA blogs—I noticed one headline that the conspicuously stood out among the rest. Namely, I was named.

I clicked the link, which took me to an Associated Press article:

_ATLANTIC CITY (AP) – Prosecutors in the arson case that evacuated seven hundred guests from the Revel hotel on Atlantic City's boardwalk early New Year's Day stood before Judge Holleran this morning for a special hearing. A state investigator, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, stated that the woman accused of setting the blaze, twenty-seven-year-old Victoria Mitchell, failed to appear in court Tuesday morning. Mitchell had been remanded to the custody of her court-appointed attorney, Martin Avery, and ordered to wear a GPS monitoring device while awaiting trial. _

_Mitchell, according to court documents, is a resident of Las Vegas, Nev. Avery had successfully argued that his client was not a flight risk, given her high-profile relation to professional mixed martial arts league president Terry Dean. The state was preparing to appeal the judge's decision to grant her bond, when state police informed the court of the suspect's disappearance. Likewise, Avery has not been seen since witnesses recognized the attorney leaving the district attorney's office Friday night at 7:45 p.m._

_According to federal investigators, Mitchell has been linked to James Hunter, the deceased leader of a gun and drug smuggling operation based in Miami, Fla. Hunter was killed on New Year's Day in the early morning hours after he allegedly attempted to strangle Isabella Swan, Key West native and girlfriend of professional fighter Edward Cullen, while she lay in a hospital bed recovering from injuries sustained during the hotel evacuation. A motive for the attack on Swan has not been released, as a spokesperson representing the joint taskforce of the FBI, DEA, and ATF stated that he could not comment on an ongoing investigation. In Miami, however, the spokesperson admitted that several arrests had been made concerning associates of Hunter. _

_Edward Cullen, also an attorney licensed in Massachusetts and New York, owned a partial interest in the Revel hotel at the time of the fire, according to a hotel representative. He has since sold his share of the privately held hotel empire owned by the Denali family and operated by Tanya Denali. The chief operating officer, based in Los Angels, has been named as a witness for the prosecution in the Miami federal case. In a statement released in February, Denali's lawyer, Max Shifton, stated only that his client was cooperating fully with federal investigators, but had no other comment as to her knowledge or involvement in the case. _

The office phone rang. It rang three times before I peeled my attention from the screen and lifted the handset from the receiver. My hand trembled as I placed the phone to my ear.

"Hello?" I didn't have the presence of mind to greet the caller with the name of the gym, as I usually did in an attempt to sound profession. I swallowed roughly, noticing the way my voice sounded shaky. "Last Resort," I added after a pause. I heard a sigh on the other end of the phone, some shuffling, and then a voice I'd recognize on any continent.

"Drew," he breathed in a low, relieved tone. "I've found you."

* * *

**End Notes:** Now do you get it? Everyone knows who is on the other end of the phone, right?


	24. Chapter 24

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

**A/N:** Whoa, what a response. Thank you for all the reviews/comments on the last chapter. Please keep them coming. I love to hear what you think about the story so far.

* * *

"Drew?"

I stared unseeing at the artificial wood grain of Emmett's laminate desk.

"Come on, doll. I know you're there."

That accent, the oddest combination of British and Irish, rolled off his tongue and around the familiar syllables in a teasingly jovial tone. Rather than at a loss for words, my mind battled with my tongue to spit out just one coherent sentence. There were too many responses to his query, all of them unfriendly.

"Drew—"

"Stop calling me that," I snapped. To my ears, my voice was dry and vacant. "How did you get this number?"

"Google, doll. We have that here."

"How did you know where to find me?"

"You're headline news. I saw your picture and the story about..." He paused, and I listened to the lack of noise in the background, wondering where he was, what he was doing. Where would I be if I'd stayed? "Isabella suits you, beautiful."

"You can't call me," I told him with no little determination. "I—I'm sorry, Dem, but you don't know me. Whatever you think we ha—"

"I want to see you," he interjected, though his voice was still soft, not argumentative. The elegant tenor of his words was so disarming. I was transported, if only for a moment, to the scene of him standing behind a microphone, eyes closed, crooning to a transfixed audience.

"No."

"I'll be in States next week. Florida, actually."

"You're not listening." I closed my eyes, begging for the right words that would end this conversation quickly enough that I could convince myself it was only a hungover, exhausted hallucination. "I left, Demetri. I left London, I left the band, and I left you. Now, don't embarrass yourself. We had fun, but it's over."

"Aww, babe, you're hurting my feelings."

There was a brief moment in time where I had admired Dem's unflappable ego. Now was not that time. If only I'd been raised by misogynistic assholes, perhaps I would have known how to properly reject an unwanted lover. As it was, I was floundering to hit the right button.

"Listen, I have nothing to say to you. I don't want to see you. Don't call me again."

"Who's on the phone?"

My eyes snapped up at the sound of a very terse, sharp voice. Edward didn't wait for an answer before striding across the office, sweaty and dressed in his training shorts with his hands wrapped in fingerless gloves. He reached for the phone, which I immediately slammed back to its cradle.

Edward leveled me with a hard, stern look. Whether from his workout or how much he might have overheard before announcing his presence, Edward's fists were clenched, making the tendons in his forearms flex against the skin.

"Who was that?"

"No one."

The article about Victoria had primed me. Demetri's call lit the fuse, but Edward's accusatory tone fanned the flames of my temper on what had already started as a wretched day.

"Bella." Edward's voice carried a warning, and though it was understood, I chose to ignore it.

"I'm afraid that I'm under a pre-existing agreement not to discuss the matter." I straightened up in my chair, meeting Edward's gaze defiantly. His green eyes, piercing and narrowed, flashed with aggression.

"With whom?"

"Myself."

"And this contract is binding?" Edward spoke with no amusement or mockery. He raised an eyebrow, daring me. He knew better.

"Iron-clad."

"You're pissing me off," he growled.

"Ditto."

"Fine." Without his answer, and disregarding whatever his reason for seeking me out in the first place, Edward stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him.

xXx

Reinvigorated by agitation, I managed to get caught up on my spreadsheets and keep down two-thirds of the smoothie that Tyler had kindly delivered. Stress, apparently, was good for my countenance. However, I wasn't eager to tempt fate. When Emmett came knocking to invite me to lunch, I passed on the offer in exchange for having an hour of uninterrupted snooping online.

I only briefly entertained the idea of Facebook stalking Demetri. I hadn't engaged in social media since leaving the States two years ago, but there had been a page and Twitter account dedicated to the band while I'd been with them. I had, of course, made it a demand that no pictures of me ever be shared online. So far as I was aware, that stipulation had always been respected.

Instead of dwelling on the call—I'd made my position clear and felt confident that the rude brush-off would quell any idea Demetri had about a repeat—I searched for more information about Victoria. Unfortunately, all I found were mentions of her arrest and prior court appearances. There was no further information about her recent disappearance.

No doubt Edward was already aware. Though the news had come out while we were in Boston, I expected that he'd been informed. A few months ago, I might have thrown a fit over the fact that he'd allowed me to find out via the Associated Press instead of my attorney, but no longer.

In fact, it wasn't my case at all. Sure, she'd been acting on James' orders to give him the distraction he needed that night, but it was Edward and Tanya who'd suffered the loss of the hotel's lounge, kitchen, and a few other spaces due to the sabotaged sprinkler system. It was assumed she might have had help from a member of the hotel's maintenance staff, but another suspect had never been identified. That information, Edward had hoped, would be brought out in a plea deal.

Furthermore, Edward had effectively removed himself from the case when he sold back his share of the hotel. Either Victoria was sitting pretty in Mexico by now, sitting on her lawyer's lap and sipping mojitos, or the FBI would eventually track her down. Frankly, I was relieved to let it be someone else's problem.

Therefore, having shelved other concerns, I turned my Googling attentions toward Royce King. It didn't take long to find public records of a lawsuit filed in Manhattan with King named as the defendant. He was accused of patent infringement, but the case had been settled out of court through arbitration within six months. The details were convoluted and boring, but it gave me an answer to the case that had originally brought Edward and Royce together. Admittedly, I was a bit disappointed that it was so innocuous. As he'd stated, Edward was not named as counsel in the original lawsuit.

Following that trail of crumbs, I investigated deeper into Edward's former employer. Hewitt, Roche & Harper was a large firm, with divisions serving just about every area of civil and criminal law. Edward's name returned several public records for cases brought before Manhattan court. It seemed he'd spent the first year of his tenure in civil litigation, but had graduated to felony criminal cases in the second year. Some time ago, when I'd playfully insisted that my lawyer should have to prove his credentials if I were facing charges, Edward had described his coursework at Harvard. He'd originally been intent to study business and financial law, but had abruptly changed specialties to criminal law following the death of his father.

Royce had a plentiful digital trail related to the formation of King Consolidated and various patent skirmishes—all settled out of court or dismissed outright. Unfortunately, I found nothing especially scandalous to suggest why Edward would be under a gag order. In fact, according to my search of public records, Edward had never represented Royce—criminally or otherwise. I was convinced, however, that it was not a patent or business transaction that was the root of the bad blood between the two.

By the time Jasper returned from lunch to drag me out to the fitness floor for my regular afternoon session, I'd deleted my search history and cleared the browser cache. And just because I was in a shit mood, I sent Edward and email with a link to the AP article about Victoria.

xXx

Edward loitered around the condo Friday night while I unpacked my clothes. I had been momentarily depressed by how quickly I'd collected all of my worldly possessions and placed them in just five medium-sized boxes. Month ago I'd cleaned out my storage unit and donated all but the clothes I still had use for, a few sentimental trinkets that had belonged to Charlie, and the guitar that Jasper had given me as a high school graduation present. On the upside, the entire move from the house to Edward's condo—our condo—took only forty-five minutes. There was, after all, something to be said for living a life of detachment from material things.

Since our altercation at the gym the day before, there had been an uneasy distance between us. Pulling the moving-out card, I'd insisted that I needed a night at home with Jasper and Emmett to cook a last supper and bake Emmett's cake Thursday night. I hadn't mentioned that Emm's only stipulation was our planned night out on Saturday.

But as Friday had arrived right on time, I stood over a full dresser drawer in our bedroom, unable to avoid Edward any longer. Tonight we'd agreed to share a private night in to celebrate our new living arrangement. The more I thought on the significance of this occasion, the worse I felt.

I was punishing him. Still irritated that he refused to trust me with his secret where Royce was concerned, I'd used the brief exchange over Demetri's phone call to stick the knife in Edward's back. That was beneath me. Well, it was beneath the person I wanted to be within the confines of this relationship.

Edward had been looking forward to this night for some time. With my attitude and avoidance, I had effectively stolen his ability to be happy over the occasion of me moving in. Sure, in the past Edward had sulked a little over my resistance to divulging the whole truth about Mike, but he hadn't drawn out his poor mood or avoidance. He'd been patient, understanding, and always available when I'd needed him.

So far, the scoreboard was heavily weighted in his favor.

Once I'd put away the last of my clothes, I changed my outfit with the mission of offering Edward a truce. I wanted to make tonight special for him, despite whatever specters of the past were hanging over our heads.

I found Edward in his office, hunched over his laptop. For a minute I stood in the doorway observing him in the glow of a desk lamp. He'd shed his T-shirt, which I'd seen tossed over the back of the couch, and now wore only his Adidas warm-up pants. His hair was typically mussed, one lock defiantly hanging over his forehead while he typed.

Even in the midst of our worst fights, it was impossible not to admire his physical beauty. Edward's broad shoulders, strong arms, and defined chest were the epitome of virile masculinity. No matter the argument, I could never be mad at his body. At the thought, my lips pulled up into a small smile. He was mine—insufferable, maddening man that he was.

"You're staring, Ms. Swan." He didn't raise his eyes from the computer screen, but his tone held a hint of teasing.

"You're beautiful, Mr. Cullen."

Edward looked up, pushing his chair back slightly from his desk. I watched the recognition play out across his features. From acute concentration to tempered surprise to predatory want, Edward regarded me with sharp awareness.

"I brought you a peace offering," I informed him. Wearing only his Harvard T-shirt, I padded barefoot across the Persian rug and came to stand at the corner of his desk, idly tracing one finger over the framed picture of us at the wheel of his boat during our trip to the Dry Tortugas.

"Were we fighting?" Edward reclined in his chair, trying his best to bite back that crooked grin.

"Not tonight."

Edward took my hand to guide me around the edge of the desk. Rather than pulling me sit in his lap, he led me to stand between his bent knees. I draped my arms over his shoulders and burrowed my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck.

He was quite the contradiction; shirtless, Edward commanded a small empire from his dimly lit office via a silver MacBook Pro laptop. Here, in our penthouse overlooking those who were content to be forgotten and left alone at the tip of southern civilization, Edward traded millions from one gloved, violent hand to the other.

"What's going on in there?" He asked softly, wrapping his arm around to teasingly fondle my bare thighs.

"You're pretty interesting, you know. At the very least, I'll never get bored around you."

"At the very least," he repeated, nodding in amusement. He dragged his fingers up my thighs, sliding his palms over my bare ass. "You know this is a particular fantasy of mine."

"Is it?" I asked innocently. "I just found this old thing while I was putting my clothes away. It's comfy." I tugged on the front of the Harvard shirt I wore, smiling.

"If you must wear clothes in our home, I demand that it be only this." Edward pinned me between him and the edge of his desk. Pulling his hands to the front, he stroked the inside of my thighs with his thumbs.

For a moment, he appeared enthralled at watching the crimson hem of the long T-shirt inch higher as his hands moved over my skin. I watched him appreciate the view, and grew increasingly warm under his sure touch.

"About the phone call—"

"You'll tell me if I should be concerned," he answered quickly. His voice was tender, forgiving. "If someone is bothering you, if you need me to deal with it…"

"I'll tell you," I agreed appreciatively. "Thank you. And I'm sorry for copping an attitude about it. Rough morning," I shrugged.

Edward looked to my eyes, smiling contentedly. He reached up, coaxing my lips down to meet his as his hand splayed over the edge of my jaw and the side of my neck. Our kiss was sweet, loving. He licked across my bottom lip, and I opened for him eagerly. Connected and drinking of the other, Edward wrapped one arm behind my back and pulled me to sit across his lap with my legs hanging over one armrest. I tightened my hold around his neck and tugged on the roots of his hair as I endeavored to bring more of our bodies into contact. He cradled me close, cupping my cheek in his hand as we made up for yesterday's tiff.

"Are you hungry?" I dragged my nail through the stubble on Edward's jaw, enjoying the easy smile that replaced his lips on mine.

Edward smirked as he trailed his fingers up my bare legs, slipping under the hem of my T-shirt and further. He raised one eyebrow as I exhaled roughly, parting my legs enough to allow him to slide his hand to my sex. He barely brushed his fingertips at the juncture of my thighs, teasing me.

"Starving," he answered, his tenor communicating a want that had nothing to do with ordering Thai food.

"Was I interrupting you? Because I can come back later."

Edward spread my legs wider, enough to allow him to completely cover my sex with his palm as he dipped one finger inside me. I bit back a moan and burrowed my head against his shoulder. My back arched and hips flexed against his hand, seeking friction.

"I'm not letting you get away that easy."

Another long finger penetrated me. Reflexively, my muscles clenched around his fingers, drawing him in. Edward pressed his thumb against my clit, creating teasing circles that were just enough to ignite my need, but not enough to draw me to climax. Voracious for my orgasm, I tried to find the leverage to move against his hand, but my position left me only writhing ineffectually on Edward's lap. In chorus with my increasingly needy whimpers, Edward groaned and flexed his stiff erection against my ass.

I heard Edward swiftly slap his laptop closed and push it aside. Hoisted out of his lap, I lay on the cool wood of the desk. Edward parted my knees wide and then positioned my calves over his shoulders. I was spread out before him, on my back, looking up into the ravenous expression of Edward's desire.

"I missed you last night," Edward stated somewhat wistfully.

"I know baby. I'm sorry." When he didn't immediately get on with it—I was position rather provocatively and awkwardly for a real conversation—I propped myself up on both elbows to look at him. "It's just us tonight. Please, baby."

"Anything, love." Edward lowered himself between my legs to kiss up the inside of one thigh and then the other. I collapsed back to the desk, delighting in the feel of his lips against my flesh.

I didn't squirm or beg him to hurry. For once, I just relaxed and let Edward have his way without my interference. He was patient and gentle as he softly stroked his fingers up and down my legs, over my stomach, and higher to massage my breasts. Taking extreme care to caress nearly every reachable inch of my body, Edward finally placed his mouth against my sex and licked through my slit. I arched off the desk at the feel of his tongue, warm and firm, parting me.

In a few short minutes, I was tightly gripping the roots of his hair, flexing against his mouth, and panting for air. When Edward curled two fingers inside me and sucked my clit between his lips, I cried out an exhausted, exultant version of his name. My legs trembled uncontrollably as my orgasm pulled at every muscle. My lips were number and quivering, my vision dark.

"Come here, angel." Edward pulled me up from the desk and I wrapped my legs around his back, resting my head on his shoulder. "I'm not nearly done with you."


	25. Chapter 25

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

* * *

Saturday morning I pulled in Delaney's mooring lines as Emmett shoved us off the dock. It had been entirely too long since the three of us had taken Jasper's boat out for a fun, relaxing day on the Gulf. Once we were beyond the marina and outside the No Wake Zone, Jasper throttled up. Emmett hung out behind the center console while Jasper drove. As usual, I was perched at the bow, bouncing on the bench cushions as we pitched up over swells and dropped into troughs.

Lathered up in sun block, my Wayfarers on, I happily absorbed the sun's revitalizing rays as I breathed in the fresh scent of ocean air and salt water. Tiny droplets of sea spray misted my bare arms and shoulders, coating my skin in cool water and salt flecks.

As we ran ten nautical miles offshore, I watched as flying fish emerged from the wake to race our boat before elegantly diving back under the surface. I kept my eyes scanning the near area, searching for dolphins.

I loved everything about being out on the open water; the freedom, the speed, the sound of the propeller cutting through the water, the hum of the engine, the way the sun reflected on the water and sparkled.

Our first stop was a coral reef where the three of us went for a dive. Luckily, the barracudas were content to keep their distance. We passed Jasper's underwater camera around, snapping shots of parrot fish, sea anemones, sergeant majors, and a pissed off eel that did not take too kindly to our intrusion.

After lunch on the boat, we rode out to deeper water, about thirty miles offshore, to fish for dolphin and marlin. Unfortunately, we only managed two keepers, but tossed them back anyway.

As the sun began to set, we motored back to the marina. I was physically exhausted, though emotionally reinvigorated. I had been careless in letting so many months go by since the last time I'd shared an entire day on the water with my brothers. I had missed Emmett's constant teasing, Jasper's enthusiasm for reeling in a catch, and the easy way in which the three of us could sit and talk for hours while letting the boat drift on the water.

We made it back to the house just after seven in the evening. After showering, I called Edward to check in. He was having Alice over for dinner, so at least those two were occupied for the evening.

"I miss you, angel." Edward sounded as though he was doing his best not to let on that he was sulking a little. "What time are you coming home?"

"Late. We're going to Duval, probably Flying Monkey first, and then bar hopping from there. We'll end up at Tony's for last call."

"I'll pick you up," Edward insisted immediately. "I don't want you walking home from the bar alone."

"It wouldn't be the first time," I quipped absently, tugging a comb through my hair as I continued to get dressed.

"Promise that you'll call me when you're ready to leave. Otherwise I'll crash your party early."

"Okay, okay." I smiled, imagining the impatient scowl on his face. "I'll call you. I promise."

There was a pause as I heard Alice's muffled voice in the background. Apparently she was making a mess of Edward's kitchen.

"Who taught you how to chop an onion?" I heard him argue in exasperation. "And do you have to use every spoon in the drawer?"

I chuckled. Alice was a decent cook, but Edward liked things to be done just so. Having his sister disrupt the orderliness of his space was something that always drove Edward a little bonkers. It was the consequence of living alone for his entire adult life.

"Sounds like you've got your hands full."

"She's doing it on purpose just to spite me."

I pictured Edward running his hand through his hair, sighing as he walked into the bedroom to ignore Alice.

"I miss you," he repeated. "Apparently I need a social life. When the three of you ban outsiders for the night, I'm left with an annoying little munchkin tearing my house down."

"Aww," I laughed. "You could always call Garrett. You two could paint each other's nails and—"

"Even he has a fucking date with Kate," Edward groaned.

I laughed harder, realizing he'd honestly tried to find a distraction for the night. "I'm sorry, but that's kinda cute."

"You're enjoying this a little too much." His voice dropped, his tone more edgy.

"I can't help it. The famous millionaire playboy is stuck at home being babysat by his sister. That's kinda adorable and pathetic at the same time."

"Thanks. How compassionate of you."

"I miss you too," I told him honestly. "If this wasn't important, I wouldn't have asked you not to come along. Thank you for understanding."

"Of course, love. I get it. And as long as you're coming home to me, you can take all the time you need."

"Just not too much," I answered with a smirk evident in my voice.

"That's right."

"I've got to finish getting dressed—"

"Send me a picture," he interjected. I never did, at least not the sort he wanted, but it was a running joke.

"I'll call you after dinner, okay? Unless you and Alice will be two boxes of tissues into 'The Notebook' by then."

"You think you're joking," he groused. "The DVD is sitting on the coffee table this very moment. I've considered tossing it off the balcony."

"I'll owe you for this," I answered sympathetically. Of course Edward loved spending time with his sister, but their ideas of entertainment for an evening at home were very different.

"I'll collect."

xXx

"20s are closed out, Leroy. Suck on that."

I proudly lifted my beer to my lips after shooting a trip-20 in our dart game of Cricket. The three of us were close in points, and Jasper kept edging forward by scoring on 20s. He knew it was the hardest spot on the board for me to hit. I had to stand on my tiptoes to throw darts.

"No," Jasper laughed, "I'm proud of you. It only took you sixteen rounds to stop landing on 1 and 5. That's got to be a personal best."

I flipped him off as I took my seat on the stool at our high-top table. The farther Jasper slipped from the lead, the more condescending his trash talk.

"Here, Bells." Emmett crouched down, offering me his back. "If you want, you can sit on my shoulders while you throw."

I smacked his shoulder, to which he feigned injury. "Stop worrying about my game. You're about to get shut out if you can't start closing out 15 and 16."

"At least she can cast a line better than she throws darts," Jasper added.

"I've got this awful crick in my neck right here." Emmett rubbed at his neck, putting on an affected pout. "Bella?"

"Come here."

Emmett stood in front of me while I dug my thumbs into his broad, thick shoulders. He let out an illicit groan that made Jasper and I laugh. "Aww, baby, you're so good to me."

We'd thoroughly made the rounds down Duval Street and were now settled at Tony's. The place was crowded, as usual, and noisy as hell. Russ had finally broken down and hired another bartender, a guy I recognized from high school, to fill Jake's vacant spot. After I'd informed Jasper that Jake had moved to Tennessee, he convinced Russ it was time to accept the fact that the kid wasn't coming back. An errant thought of checking in on Billy passed through my mind, but I ignored it.

Not my problem.

I glanced up from my work on Emmett, catching the television over our heads, and saw the text of the close captioning scroll across the screen. "Hey. Check it out," I said to the guys. Emmett lifted his head and Jasper abandoned his darts to stand beside me.

_Julio "The Assassin" Nova will face the undefeated Edward Cullen in the cage next month. Nova, who is known for giving colorful interviews, issued a challenge to his opponent when we stopped by his training session in Dallas._

The scene cut to a shot of Nova, a bulky guy with mangled nose and swollen ears, standing in a gym with a reporter's microphone in his face. The captioning was slow to catch up to the interview on screen, but as the words trailed across, Jasper and I shared a look.

_"Edward Cullen won a first-round knockout in his most recent fight. He tied the UFC all-time record for quickest win. What is your strategy for overcoming Cullen's impressive striking?"_

_"We fight. We hit each other. That's what we do. Are you asking if I'm scared? Of course not."_

Nova looked into the camera with an expression of pure violence.

_"I'll give you one free shot. I'll stand still and let you give it your best try. But if you don't knock me out, I'm going to put you in the hospital."_ Nova turned back to the camera. _"That's my strategy."_

"That guy is a clown." Emmett dismissed Nova's threat with irreverence as he finished off his beer. "Nova is slow and has no stamina. No way he'll keep with Edward."

"He's never been knocked out," Jasper stated soberly. "He's got an iron jaw."

"Fuck that guy." I drained the last of my beer and slammed it a little harder than necessary to the table. "Edward isn't going to rise to the bait like that. I hope he takes the fight to the ground and chokes the bastard out."

"Don't sweat it." Emmett wrapped his arm over my shoulder and squeezed me to his side. "This is just part of the game. Some guys like to stir up trouble before the fights. It is just PR hype. Headlines like that sell more tickets and Pay-Per-Views."

"I'm not worried," I answered defiantly. "Edward always wins."

When we left the bar, Edward was waiting at the curb as promised. I filled him in on Nova while he drove us home, but he seemed uninterested. Instead, his roaming hand kept traveling between the stick shift and my neck or thigh. I took it as a good sign that Edward didn't display an ounce of irritation at the very public threat. Emmett was right; fighters carried out arguments in the press all the time. Rather the animosity was real or just showmanship, it wasn't unusual.

"And Brody wanted me to thank you, again, for the flight to Gainesville. He said the van service scheduled everything for the gear, so they're all set with that."

"Are you excited?" Edward briefly glanced at me, smiling easily. Alice clearly hadn't gone out of her way to aggravate her brother. That, or sappy love stories put Edward in a decidedly mellow mood.

"I am," I nodded as I leaned back in my seat. I had a good buzz on, and my skin felt too warm. "Actually, I've never seen you at real rock show before. This should be interesting."

"Oh?" Edward smiled crookedly.

"I'm having a hard time picturing you in that environment, rocking out. And Tony's doesn't count."

"Just promise me you won't attempt crowd surfing. I'd rather not get arrested."

I laughed, picturing Edward going ballistic at every grabby male coping a feel of my breasts and ass I as was passed over the crowd. Yeah, he'd leave a path of destruction in his wake—all the way to the police station. I idly wondered how many hits from a taser it would take to bring Edward down.

"I promise," I agreed. "For Brody's set he said he can brining us backstage to watch from the side."

Edward raised his eyebrow, to which I shook my head and laughed again.

"No stage diving. I swear."

"You're so easy lately," Edward chuckled as he pulled in to the parking garage. "I'm not dying, right? An inoperable brain tumor I'm unaware of. Or is Alice having you butter me up for something big?"

"Nope." I popped the lock on my seatbelt and quickly got out of the car. "I can be reasonable when the requests are too."

"Well…" Edward pulled me into his arms and swept my hair off my shoulder to kiss the side of my neck. "I'll have to be reasonable more often, if this is the reaction."

I raised myself to my tiptoes, carving my fingers through his soft hair. Our lips met sweetly at first, teasingly, and then grew more eager. Edward backed me up until my legs hit the low hood his Vanquish. Maneuvering us farther, I was then pressed against the driver's side door while Edward hitched my leg around his hip.

"I'm keeping you in bed tomorrow," Edward whispered against my lips as he pressed his erection against my stomach. "All to myself."

"No arguments," I replied.

Our tongues tasted of the other, hungrily devouring in an attempt to make up for the lost time of just one day. I'd never tire of his—of him. The way his hands spoke of his desire. The way his emotions were always so raw, honest, and vulnerable when we were together. I felt privileged, in a way, as the only person who knew Edward this way. I was, perhaps, the only person who really knew Edward completely.

There were sides of him he shared with Alice, the Cullens, and my brothers. Edward had a public face he allowed the press to glimpse and a dark determination that a fighter unfortunate enough to stand opposite him would come to know. And yet, as the only woman he'd claimed to love, I believed I knew him better than the girl who shared a home with him or any many that had traded blood in a cage.

We'd commented on as much numerous times; Edward and I were similar in many ways. Our pasts shared threads that still influenced our behavior today. We both had deep-seeded aggression, a fear of abandonment, a sense of resentment, and so many other destructive characteristics. And yet together we'd found some sort of peace.

I hear movement in the garage, which reminded me that our public display should move to the penthouse. Edward seemed to notice as he reluctantly dragged his lips from mine and relinquished his grip on my thigh to allow me to stand on both feet.

"I love you, angel," he whispered softly as he placed a last kiss below my ear.

"I love you."

My words were drowned out by the loud sound amplified by the concrete structure of the enclosed garage. It cracked like a firework; a contained explosion of devastation. Silently, Edward collapsed against me; his full weight slumped against my chest as I was pressed to the hard metal and glass of his car. We both sank to the ground. I was unable to hold him up. And as my butt hit the ground, I felt the blood coat my shirt.

And again I couldn't scream. I tried. Desperately I struggled to force out a sound. Instead, all I could do was constrict my arms around Edward as he bled.

* * *

End Notes: I know, I suck. I'd say I'm sorry, but I'm not. So…theories and predictions?


	26. Chapter 26

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

**A/N: **You guys are such troopers. Thanks for the reviews and comments; I appreciate that you are all so invested in this story. Of course you know there is no killing Edward off. So, how do you think Bella will respond now that someone had put a target on Edward's back?

* * *

I fought against the EMTs when they came to extricate Edward from my arms. Consciously I knew I had to let him go, that they needed me out of the way so they could help him, but my arms just wouldn't obey as I clung to his shoulders and fisted his soggy shirt in my hands. One of the two men forcibly pulled me off of Edward, who was conscious and quietly telling me not to worry. The blood that coated us both told me he was lying. His voice was weak by the time they had the oxygen mask over his mouth, line running into his arm, and his body strapped to the gurney.

The closest emergency room, Lower Keys Medical Center, was a twenty-minute ride in normal traffic. Thankfully for my tenuous hold on sanity and the car, that distance was cut in half with the help of sirens and a straight shot up Flagler Avenue to Overseas Highway and then College Road.

Driving right up the ass of the ambulance and disregarding all traffic laws, I fished my phone out of my pocket. My fingers slipped over the glass screen and twice I dropped it on the center console before my blood-slippery fingers could keep a hold of the thing. Since the damn phone wouldn't accept tactile orders with my fingers wet, I used the voice command and called Jasper. He answered on the first ring and knew, of course, that something was wrong.

"Bella?"

"Is Alice with you?"

"Yeah, she's right here. What's wrong?"

"Edward's been shot. I'm following the ambulance. He was alive when they put him in, but I don't know any more than that."

"We're on our way."

"Jasper…"

As I sped through stop signs and nearly plowed into a random cyclist before swerving wildly, all I could think about was the blood; the blood that poured out of Edward's wound and seeped into both our shirts; the blood that was all over my hands, making my grip on the steering wheel slippery; the velvet liquid sticking to his leather seats and staining his floor boards. I made the gears grind between first and second three times because I couldn't keep hold of the stick shift.

"Keep it together, Bella. I'll grab Emm and we'll be there in five." He hung up, but not before I heard Alice's sleepy voice in the background. My heart sank and I felt as though I might toss up the several drinks that were sloshing around in my stomach.

The ambulance pulled up in front of the tiny hospital. Close behind, I abandoned the car at the end of the ER loop. I only caught a brief glimpse of Edward's prone form before he was rushed through the emergency room doors and directly into surgery. I followed, running after the doctors wheeling him away from me, but was abruptly stopped by a large security guard and a nurse in blue penguin scrubs.

I wanted to slap the bitch. I wanted to shove her pocket of pens right through both her eye sockets. What sort of heartless fuck wears happy little penguins where dying people are fighting for their lives?

"Miss, you can't go in there." The security guard used a forceful tone. If it was supposed to deter me, he needed to start practicing in front of a mirror.

I knew I couldn't follow Edward. I was coherent enough to realize I wouldn't be allowed to watch the doctors cut him open and sew him back together. It didn't stop me from trying. The swinging doors to the ER closed loudly, cutting off my view. Only then did the first intelligible words since the gunshot come past my lips.

"Someone tried to kill him," I exclaimed in a panicked, screeching voice that I hardly recognized. "You need to put someone outside the door." I looked at the guard, who eyed me with caution and suspicion. "You need to be guarding him!"

"The police are on their way." The bitch nurse and her stupid penguins were trying to sound comforting. I hated her even more for trying. The nurse was short, pudgy, and probably in her early 40s. Her hair was wrapped up in a messy bun at the back of her skull. "You can help him by filling out the paperwork," she continued in a sweetly calming voice that irked me. "Does he have any allergies we should be aware of? Is he taking any perscriptio—"

"No." I snapped the single syllable at her. To her credit and my annoyance, she refused to ruffle at my sharp tone.

She nodded at the security guard, effectively dismissing him. It only aggravated me more that the nurse thought either she had such a good handle on the situation or I wasn't intimidating enough to warrant armed supervision.

"Listen." The nurse straightened her spine and eyed me with what must have been her serious face. "There is absolutely nothing you can do for him in there. What you can do is take this clipboard, fill out the information, and start making phone calls."

I stared at the woman, fuming and feeling completely impotent, and then took the clipboard from her chubby fingers. Edward had been lucid enough to give the EMTs his blood type, and he didn't have any medical conditions that needed to be noted, so I put off filing in his name and shit and just paced back and forth in a corner of the waiting area.

My hands were shaking, my breath was rushed, and my heart was beating at an unsustainable rate. I felt cold sweat collecting at the nape of my neck and knew what was just seconds from occurring. I had to will myself not to give in to a panic attack. Edward was seriously hurt, Alice was going to be terrified, someone wanted him dead, and still I couldn't help but think about the last time I'd been in this hospital. I my mind, waking up from the coma and the episode with James blurred into one horrifying nightmare as I paced under the florescent lights.

Using what little rational thinking I could muster, I took deep breaths and counted each in succession as I wore a path of exactly seven steps back and forth across the white Formica floor. Edward wouldn't have caved in on himself if the situation were reversed. He hadn't. Edward would keep his shit together and think about what angle he could work for his next move. Jasper would be tabulating the variables and planning. Emmett would project focus and calm, all while thinking about the many entertaining ways he could snap the coward's neck that dared to take a shot at one of us.

Right on cue, my family came bursting through the ER doors. Alice was wearing one of Jasper's UF sweaters and black yoga pants; she looked exactly like a frightened little girl who just found out her brother, protector, and best friend was laid out on a surgery table. It hurt too much to look at her, so I made contact with Japer's coolly composed eyes and walked deliberately toward him. Emmett got to me first. He looked horrified and full of vicious anger as he yanked me off my feet and hugged too hard.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? Fuck, Bells. Fucking goddamn motherfucking shit-fuck." That was creative even for Emmett's tongue.

"I'm okay. I'm not hurt." My answer was more a series of grunts than words. I couldn't quite talk with how hard he was squeezing me, but I kept my arms wrapped tightly around his neck just the same.

Emmett put me down and held me out at arm's length by both shoulders. He scanned me up and down to check the veracity of my assurance. "Is that—"

I looked down. For a few minutes, I had completely forgotten that I was covered in Edward's blood. Worse than that, Alice saw the mess of her brother's life smeared all over my shirt, hands, arms, hair, and probably my face.

Fuck. I was still drunk.

"He's in surgery," I answered while avoiding Emmett's question. "It was a single gunshot wound through the back. The shoulder, maybe?" That's when I realized that I hadn't been hit and neither had the Vanquish. The bullet had lodged in Edward's body. "I don't know anything else right now. I didn't see the shooter."

I let my eyes fall to Alice, who was tucked under Jasper's arm and barely holding herself upright. Her big brown eyes were filled with tears and rimmed in red. And there was absolutely nothing I could do for her to make it better.

"Alice, I'm so sorry. It should have been me. I should have—"

She whipped her tiny, freakishly strong hand back and slapped me square across the face. It stung like hell and had enough force behind it to swivel my head around. I was stunned silent when I brought my eyes back to hers. I'd never seen Alice so fiercly angry at anyone. But then, I deserved it. Before I came along, people didn't regularly try to kill her brother. Even Jasper was too stunned to speak as we all just stared and waited for her to lash out with a tirade that ended in me staying the fuck away from Edward until hell froze over and unicorns flew out of my ass.

"He's going to be fine," she snapped at me sharply. "He's going to perfect. It will take a lot more than one bullet to bring him down. And if Edward knew you were out here blaming yourself, he'd let me kick your ass. So shut up with that crap. If something happens to you, I lose him just the same."

"Alice—" My voice broke on the sob I choked back.

"If you apologize again I will turn the other cheek red." Alice roughly tugged me into a hug. Together, we let the tears fall free.

This chick, who so admired her brother's strength and bravery, was so much tougher than she realized. I expected her to be freaking out and on the verge of a complete mental breakdown. Instead, Alice was unwaveringly optimistic. Her brother had done a damn good job raising her, but I suspected those years of patching him up and watching him hide his injuries had given her an unbreakable strength of spirit.

"You're right," I whispered against her hair. "He's going to be fine."

"I know I am," was her only answer.

When Alice pulled away, she grabbed the clipboard from my hand and walked over to a chair. "I'll take care of this. I called Carlisle on the way; he and Esme will be on a charter flight in a few hours." At that, she put her head down and furiously scribbled across the stack of medical forms.

"Bella?"

I looked up at Jasper. The slightest hint of fear was trapped behind his vibrant blue eyes. I swallowed hard, trying to keep my composure as I bit my trembling lip. My vision went glassy with fresh tears.

"Jazz."

I fell into his arms, wrapping my arms around his shoulders while he cradled my head to his chest. He'd spent entirely too many days, like Emmett, standing watch over my unconscious body in this same hospital. He'd helped me through sleeplessness that turned to nightmares. He'd kicked my ass during physical therapy sessions and changed my bandages. Fuck, Jasper had taken me to the bathroom when I couldn't do it alone and fucking given me baths on several occasions while I recovered from my injuries after Mike's attack.

Without a mother, without a father, and without a single female friend I could rely on, Jasper had been a surrogate for all of those relationships. He was my brother, my best friend, and a father figure when I needed one. His one mission in life, though it should never have been his burden, was trying to just keep me alive. So far, I had made that pretty damn hard on him.

"I was so scared, Jazz. I freaked out. I didn't know what to do. I just sat there holding him until they came—"

"I know, darlin'. It's okay. You did fine."

"If he doesn't make it…"

"Don't think about that right now." Jasper smoothed his hand down my hair in a soothing and repetitive motion. "I know you're scared, but you have to be brave for a little while longer. He needs you to keep your head on straight, okay?"

"Yeah," I sniffed against his shirt. "Yeah, okay."

"I love you, Bella." Jasper's arms tightened around me as he whispered over the top of my head. "I've let too much time go by since I've said that. But I love you. Emm loves you. And we're so fucking grateful that you're alive."

I winced a little. My muscles went stiff for a moment as I recalled the last words Edward had said to me before he collapsed against my chest. But Jasper was right; I had to keep my shit together. "I love you. So much."

"You've got to me kidding me." Emmett snarled behind me, which was enough to alert Jasper and I that something was wrong.

We released each other to follow Emmett's glare toward the two uniformed police officers walking toward us. Emmett took a step in front of me while Jasper wrapped his arm protectively around my shoulder. For a moment, my grief and fear was replaced with blind rage. The fact that I didn't lunge for the son of a bitch was a testament to the fact I hadn't yet completely lost my mind.

"Turn around and walk the other way," Emmett ordered in a tone that left little doubt there was an unspoken threat at the end of that statement.

"Emmett, I'm just doing my job." Jason Moore, the rat bastard, ignored the curious glance of his partner. The two officers, clad in their black uniforms and shiny badges, came to stand before our group with flat expressions.

"We've heard that one before," Jasper responded with malice.

"To be fair—"

I knew what Jason was about to say; that "to be fair," I had been the one that killed Mike. "To be fair," Mike did have a solid alibi for the night he'd broken into my apartment and beaten me nearly to death. "To be fair," the department couldn't be accused of showing favoritism toward the former chief's daughter when she admitted she never saw her attacker.

"To be fair," Emmett cut him off, "that badge is the only reason the two of us haven't met in a dark alley."

I had first met Jason several years ago at a softball game between the police department and firefighters. He was a rookie back then, and Charlie had taken the new guy under his wing. We'd seen each other at various functions over the years, and he was there with the rest of the department for my father's funeral.

Jason had been the one who had looked me in the eye and told me there was nothing he could do without any evidence that Mike had been in my apartment that night. He had been the one to tell me Paul had provided Mike with a cover story that was backed up by at least a dozen other witnesses. And when Mike had been missing for six days, Jason was the one who had pulled me off a stool at Tony's—in front of the entire town and everyone I knew—to haul me into an interrogation room.

Jason's partner, whose nametag read Moulder—I might have found that funny on any other occasion—was clearly in the dark. I didn't recognize the man with blonde hair cropped short. He looked to be in his mid-thirties and was too pale to have been here for an entire summer yet. He scanned our faces quickly and stepped forward to assert himself.

"I'll assume," he directed at Emmett, "that I misunderstood your meaning." Moulder had a slight accent that sounded more North Dakota than Alabama. "And you were not threatening an officer." Emmett snorted. He'd spend a night in jail for a chance at Jason. Moulder turned his attention to me. "With all due respect, Ms. Swan, we need to take your statement as soon as possible. The more you can tell us now—"

"I didn't shoot him," I stated defiantly to Jason. I just assumed that since they sent him, it must have been expected that the Black Widow had struck again.

Jason's expression remained blank. "I know. The officers on the scene checked the security tapes from the building first." I nodded. At least they weren't completely inept. "The security guard inside the building said you'd recently moved into the building with the victim. Is that right?"

"Yes."

Alice came to stand next to Jasper. Jason stood stalk still while his partner retrieved a small notebook from his breast pocket. Edward would not like me speaking to the police without him present. I wondered if he'd have yanked his IV lines out and stormed down here with his perfect ass hanging out of a hospital gown to play attorney. If he weren't under anesthesia, yes, he certainly would. For the record, the four of us stated our names and relations to Edward while Moulder jotted everything down.

Alice was asked to recount her evening with Edward, including what time she'd arrived and when she'd left. Of course, she hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary. Likewise, everything had seemed normal when Edward had come to pick me up at Tony's.

"If you could," Moulder asked politely, "please just tell us as much as you can remember after you arrived in the parking garage."

And so I took a breath and focused. I doubted anything I had to say would be more useful than whatever the police found on the tapes, but I did my best to relay the brief series of events in as much detail as possible. I left nothing out, including our last kiss.

No. Not our last. Not going to think like that.

I roughly tugged my hand through my hair, sighing heavily. "I never saw who it was. The shot came from behind Edward, who was standing in front of me with his back to the marina side of the garage. We were kissing, talking a little, and I heard a sound. We knew someone was in the garage, so he pulled away. Then I heard the shot and Edward went down. That's all I know."

"Did you make an ID from the tape?" Jasper asked. "Did the video get the shooter?"

"The officers on the scene have collected the tapes from all exterior and garage cameras," Moulder replied. At least Jason knew better than to speak without a good reason. "They're canvasing the area for witnesses who may have spotted the suspect approaching the garage or leaving the area after the shot."

"Can any of you think of someone who might have wanted to harm Mr. Cullen?"

Emmett rolled his head to one side and blew out an exasperated breath. "Jesus fuck, man. You're in way over your head."

Moulder raised an eyebrow. Emmett was right; this new guy on the small town police force was out of his depth in dealing with us. I looked at Jason, who seemed to deliberate if now was the right moment to clue in his partner. We didn't have time for such a lengthy story.

"Look." Jasper stepped forward. He was obviously growing impatient with the slow speed of things. "Jason can fill you in on the pertinent past. Suffice it to say, we have a past that might be relevant. Beyond that," Jasper pulled a few business cards out of his wallet and handed them to Moulder, "I suggest you put in a few calls to those numbers." Among them were the agents with FBI and DEA who had been working with before the arrests that pulled in Paul and the rest of James' network from Miami.

"As far as a enemies," I interjected, "I can name a few that are on the top of my list."

I named Victoria—if only because she was missing—and Royce King. Edward didn't seem to think that Royce's threats were anything to worry about, but I wasn't going to take that chance. Detective Hunter also made my list. He'd been indicted in the aftermath of James' death. Even if he were still securely locked up and awaiting trial, I wouldn't put it past him to have sent someone to hurt us. That left anyone behind that hadn't been arrested in the sweep of James' associates. They were an unknown quantity, and therefore exponentially more dangerous.

Alice diligently went through a list of anyone she knew of who'd had trouble with Edward over the past few years before he'd come to Key West. Again, it was a long shot, but none of us would leave a single angle unexplored. Moulder nodded and wrote quickly while Jason kept his eerie gaze locked on me. I didn't like it and I didn't like him. The sooner this was over with, the better. I had very little faith in this police department since my father's death. By the end of our exhaustive cataloguing of people who might have wanted Edward dead, Moulder looked a bit overwhelmed.

Yeah, normal people didn't make so many violent enemies.

Moulder did the usual spiel, telling us to call if we thought of anything else. "Two officers will be posted at the hospital while Mr. Cullen is admitted. Likewise, the department will likely want to put patrols on each of your residences until the suspect is caught or we know for certain he or she has fled the lower Keys."

"Understood," Jasper nodded flatly. At least I got what I wanted: protection for Edward.

"We'll be in touch as we learn more."

Jason and Moulder stood outside the ER until another patrol car pulled up through the driveway circle. The four of us sat down, finally taking a breath, when Penguin Lady walked up with a stack of blue scrubs in both hands. We all jumped right to our feet again. However, her flat expression told us that she wasn't coming to give us news about Edward. I knew it was too soon to expect an update on his condition.

"Here," she held out the scrubs. "You should all change clothes. The bathrooms are just around the corner."

I'd managed to completely overlook the fact that I'd transferred Edward's blood to the others. I certainly had the worse of it, but Jasper, Alice, and Emmett all looked as though they'd been in a car accident. I resembled a terrorized teenage running from a chainsaw-wielding manic in the third act. We took the proffered garments and separated to change out of and dispose of our bloody clothes. In the bathroom, Alice helped me wash Edward's blood from my hair.

She'd frequently insisted that I was the strong one, but I found myself leaning on her for support. She didn't flinch at the sight of Edward's blood running down the sink. She'd likely seen it from the source more times than she could count after Edward had gone three rounds with their father.

"What are you thinking?" Alice and I met eye in the mirror. Her features were calm and composed. Maybe Jasper was rubbing off on her a little.

I put my hands on the edge of the counter and searched the face that looked nothing like her brother's. What would Edward do?

As I watched little drops of water slide down the strands of my hair and fall clear into the white sink basin, I contemplated that question.

Edward would act, certainly. He wouldn't wait around for the police to distinguish their elbows from their assholes. He would not, however, go off half-cocked. Edward would devise a plan and execute it with laser focus and ruthless intent. He'd concentrate his immense intelligence and considerable resources toward his purpose, and he'd see it through no matter the cost. Edward would want to protect Alice and I first and foremost.

"We find who did this and put a bullet in his head," I answered Alice resolutely. Pulling out my phone, I wiped the blood from the screen with a paper towel and quickly found the saved number that I needed. He answered, at past 4:00 a.m., on the first ring.

"Mr. Cullen."

"Not quite," I replied. "Henry, this is Bella. I have a job for you."

* * *

** End Notes:** If you answered "Scorched Earth" to my previous question, then you'd be right. Now all they have to do is find a target. Time for Bella to get crafty, Edward to get cranky, and a whole lot of people are going to have a bad time.


	27. Chapter 27

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

* * *

Alice looked on with a resolute expression of silent approval as I quickly explained the situation to Henry. We wouldn't wait for Jasper and Emmett to reason this out, argue, and eventually come to the realization that I was right. All of us wanted to protect Edward and find out who'd tried to kill him. However, no one on this planet would suffer more than his sister and I if the next time we weren't so lucky.

Yes, I was certain there would be a next time.

"So that's all we know as of this moment," I finally sighed as I leaned against the bathroom counter. "I'm deferring to your expertise here, Henry. What's our best move?"

"Ms. Swan?"

"Bella."

"Ms. Swan," he reiterated, "I'd like to make certain we're clear about the boundaries and desired outcome."

I glanced at Alice again, drawing strength from her resolve. She didn't flinch and she didn't waiver. Yesterday I would have been terrified to have this conversation in front of her. I would have aimed to shield her from all of this unpleasantness as I knew Edward would want. But the little pixie had indeed smacked some sense into me.

"Can I speak freely?" In the movies, this wasn't the sort of conversation you were supposed to have over the phone. But then I felt more than stupid speaking in code to a former Navy SEAL.

"I seriously doubt the walls have ears," he responded dryly. That was usually Henry's answer to my poor attempts at humor or wit.

I had to say it out loud. To be honest, I was a bit... Not embarrassed but surprised at myself? Maybe a little scared of myself. But Henry hadn't said no. He also hadn't mentioned a price tag for this. I assumed that he'd agree to take up security for Edward until this was sorted out, but now... Was he offering?

"It's us or them," I answered vaguely. "I don't much care about the method." I paused for a moment, tracing my eyes over the little flecks of color in the bathroom floor tiles. "Do we understand each other?"

I'd put out a hit on an anonymous enemy from an ER bathroom. I knew someone who would accept—no, offer a hit on the anonymous foe who had fired a shot to steal away the best part of my whole world.

My mind flashed back to the hotel in Atlantic City. I had coaxed Henry into the suite to share lunch with me. As he surveyed my knife, the one that he assumed had killed Mike—it wasn't, but he'd pieced the puzzle together close enough—we'd shared a moment of understanding. We'd both taken lives, and that had given way to a bit of camaraderie between guard and guarded.

"We do," he answered flatly. "I will start working on things from my end and running down the leads you gave me. Expect me in three days. For now, I'm sending down an associate of mine. We served together," he was quick to inform me. "I trust him explicitly. His name is Simon Von and he'll have a matchbook from The Third Floor bar in San Jose as proof of identity. Got that?"

"Simon Von," I repeated aloud for him and for Alice. "Third Floor Bar, San Jose."

"Good. He'll scope out the town first. I'll send him to the gym, the house, and he'll make a sweep of the condo building. I assume he should make himself scarce?"

"I'm sure Edward will be in the hospital for a while, but yes. Until he is up and moving around, I'd rather not make a show of it."

"You'll hear from me in three days. Sooner if I learn anything concrete."

"Henry—"

"I owe you a debt, Ms. Swan. I'd like to square that balance."

I sucked my words back behind my lips and nodded silently at the phone.

"Don't expect a swift resolution. But I can make it clean and thorough."

"Goodnight, Henry."

"Good morning, Ms. Swan."

xXx

We had nothing left to do but wait. I fucking hated waiting. Alice kept up her brave face when she announced that Carlisle and Esme had sent a text confirming they'd boarded the chartered flight bound for Key West. Jasper alternated between holding Alice against his shoulder and trekking to the vending machines to push carb and caffeine on us. I swapped between resting against Jasper's other arm, laying across Emmett's lap, pacing the waiting room, and glaring openly at Penguin Nurse.

Somewhere around the forth hour I entered into a staring contest with the doors that lead beyond the lobby. I willed them to open and a doctor to emerge to give us some indication of how Edward was doing. I lost.

In the fifth hour of our vigil, Emmett was pacing, Alice had fallen briefly asleep in Jasper's lap, and I was nestled under his arm with my head on his shoulder.

"Talk to me, Bella." Jasper whispered against my hair, careful not to wake Alice. We'd all been awake for nearly 24 hours at this point. "I know how your mind works."

"I called Henry," I admitted immediately. Now was as good a time as any to broach the subject. Emmett stopped pacing in front of us. I glanced up, my eyes too tired to offer any expression at all. "He's going to do some digging and is sending someone down to keep an eye out. Henry will be here in three days."

"Do I want to know how you swung that one?" Emmett crouched down by my legs. "I can't imagine that conversation will go over well with Edward. So unless he's already given you his AmEx..."

"I've got a trust fund too, you know." Apparently Alice hadn't been asleep after all. She didn't open her eyes as Jasper gently traced his fingers up and down her arm. "Don't worry about the money, that's the least of our problems."

"I brought him up to speed," I continued. "He's going to shake the trees and whatnot, see what falls out."

"And in the meantime?" Jasper angled his head to look down at me. Our eyes met, and so much uncertainty passed between us.

"We help Edward recover," I halfheartedly shrugged. My limbs just weren't up to moving around much. "What else can we do until we have a direction?"

"For starters?" Emmett sat back and plopped down on his ass. "Running interference when the press gets ahold of this. We have to pull him from his fights. And, frankly..." I looked at Emm, whose eyes were tired, worried, and for the first time I had no idea what he was thinking. "I think maybe it is time to pack it in, Bells. If this is half as bad as we fear, it might be time to just hide out and wait for the storm to pass."

"Run?" I asked incredulously. "You want to run?"

"Listen to what he's saying," Jasper defended.

"Just hunker down somewhere until they catch the bastard. You could lay low at Oceana with Jazz's parents or chill at my family's place in Montana. Then—"

"Edward won't run," Alice interjected. "And he won't leave you guys behind, either. Might as well just give up that idea right now."

"See?" I nodded at Alice in Jasper's lap. "That's three against two. You've been out-voted." Yep, Alice and I were going to make great allies.

A couple hours later, Carlisle and Esme arrived. Unfortunately, we still had nothing to report. He wasn't at all surprised, and proceeded to ease all of our minds somewhat by delivering a thorough explanation of the surgical intricacies of treating a gunshot wound. In short, it was good news that no one had yet to emerge to bring bad news.

Another hour and it became obvious that Carlisle had begun to worry. While Alice did her best to keep Esme's mind occupied in conversation, Carlisle went to the nurses station to introduce himself, confirm unquestionably that, indeed, we were all immediate family of the patient, and expound upon his medical credentials. He was scheming for a way inside the hallowed halls beyond the gates. I hoped like hell it might work.

In the time I'd spent with Carlisle in Boston, I'd observed him to be a calm, collected, and reserved man. At the moment, he was clearly itching to be at his nephew's side. I could only imagine how frustrating it was to be a vastly superior surgeon than likely anyone one else in 100 miles of this hospital, and yet relegated to a waiting room.

I was starting to doze off again when Emmett Jerked upright and practically tossed me on the floor. A doctor emerged from the fabled double doors to scan the waiting room. Immediately, Carlisle approached the man and shook his hand. I hauled myself to my feet, determined to tie that doctor down and threaten him with all manner of bodily harm until he let me see Edward.

"Wait," Jasper whispered. He wrapped both hands over the top of my shoulders and held me still.

For once, I didn't struggle. Maybe I was too tired or it just felt good to have his touch ground me for a moment. We stood there, all of us anxious, as the doctor handed Carlisle a clipboard. They spoke, nodded, flipped pages, and nodded some more. It took entirely too long, but finally Carlisle looked up to us. Quickly, the doctor fled back through the double doors.

"What?" I asked loudly. "What did he say?"

Carlisle looked haggard, like a man who'd been woken too early in the morning and traveled to be at the side of his suffering nephew should. His clear blue eye were a little red, a little sunken, and he had the slightest bit of blonde stubble framing his jaw. His eyes surveyed our group and then locked in mine. But he gave nothing away.

"He's stable."

We all let out an audible exhale. Esme hugged Alice. Jasper and Emmett each wrapped an arm around me as I leaned on their weight.

"But he is still in critical condition and currently breathing on a ventilator."

My legs gave out from under me. I got lightheaded and felt immediately that I might throw up. But I didn't fall. Emmett and Jasper felt me falter and held me up when I just couldn't fake the strength any longer.

"The bullet entered through the back of his left shoulder. It missed his scapula but cracked his third rib and pierced his lung. They were able to remove the bullet, but his blood pressure dropped precariously low. They've stopped the bleeding, but they'll have to go back in to repair his lung."

"Is he going to be okay?" Esme's soft voice begged her husband to give us all some sort of reassurance.

He looked kindly at his wife, but made no move to take her from Alice's arms. "I'm going to call back home and have them send over my credentials," Carlisle answered. "The fact is, Edward should be moved to Miami. However, traveling in his condition would only exacerbate the trauma. There is just no guarantee he'd survive the relocation."

I admired the calm professionalism in his tone and the unwavering connection in his eyes. Everything we felt at this moment—the fear, the anger, the helplessness—Carlisle experienced it too. He simply had the benefit of years of practice.

"I'm going to perform the procedure," he announced. And my legs regained their strength. "This is highly unorthodox, and I'm certain the medical board will convene an inquiry as a result, but I'm here and they are not."

"We have complete faith in you," Alice told him with a voice so full of certainty, that I wondered how she mustered up the energy. "He'd want it to be you. No question."

Esme finally unwound from Alice to wrap her arms around her husband, whisper something in his ear, and then kiss his cheek. Alice was next. When Carlisle finally looked to me, I stepped forward on more confident feet.

"Bring him back to me," I spoke against his chest as we hugged. "I don't know how to live without him anymore."


	28. Chapter 28

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N: **I know it has been a while. Sorry for the delay. As you may have noticed, I've been wrapped up in **The Debt**. Oh, you haven't read it yet? Well head over to my profile after you finish up here and read it. It is kind of a big deal. :-) **Under the Blood Moon** was recently featured on **The Lemonade Stand's** weekly poll, and The Debt is up there this week, as well as in the Nursery.

Also, I've recently reposted the first three chapters of Rare Purity, my very first fanfic. If you were not among my original readers, I invite you to check it out. Vamps/Wolves and the whole bit. It is my AU retelling of Twilight with some significant differences. You can read the backstory over on RP, but there are 39 chapters completed that will be posted quickly over the next few weeks. Already up to chapter 3 today.

As always, I appreciate your comment and reviews, and am so thankful to all of my loyal readers.

* * *

**Chapter 28**

Though Carlisle had tried to prepare me for what I would see, his words did little good. I'd let Esme and Alice go first, greeting Edward when he came out of the anesthesia following the successful surgery. I'd lost track of how long we'd been camped out at the hospital awaiting word from Carlisle. Now that I was faced with the reality, I felt all that manufactured strength and bravery collapse.

I had waited outside Edward's room for nearly thirty minutes after is aunt and sister left. I breathed in and out, settling myself, and nervously trying to muster up a courageous face. It was all a thinly veiled front. I was crumbling inside with every minute that passed.

When I pushed through the door into Edward's room, my heart shattered to the floor in silence. His eyes were closed, tubes ran from his body in all directions, and there were bandages surrounding this left shoulder. He wore an oxygen mask to help him breathe, though Carlisle had taken him off of the ventilator now that his lungs were functioning normally.

At least they'd cleaned him up. He looked almost like himself again; an invincible man temporarily impeded in his usual domination of the world around him. I stood there, admiring his face, his messy hair, and the rise and fall of his chest. The beeping sound of the heart monitor was encouraging, no longer a source of irritation that only reminded me of the many times it had kept pace with my own pulse.

I'd never give Edward and my brothers a hard time about my safety again. Looking at Edward like this—so vulnerable and human—brought to mind the pain they must have endured when I'd been in a bed like this. For Emmett and Jasper especially, having seen it more than once.

I quietly walked toward Edward and sat in the beside chair. He looked to be asleep again. I didn't want to wake him. He needed the rest. Of course, whether I was as sneaky as I'd intended or he just sensed me, Edward's eyelashes fluttered before his lids rose tiredly.

"Hey you," I greeted him with a huge smile that I tried to keep from spreading over my entire face. I'd never take those green eyes for granted again.

He reached for the oxygen mask, but I removed it gently for him. "Hi," he croaked out. His voice was rough.

I turned behind me and grabbed a cup of water, holding the straw to his dry lips. He sucked gently, nodding and pulling away when he'd had enough.

"Thank you," Edward answered with a bit more strength in his voice.

I saw his right hand trying to find its way out from under the blankets and pulled it into both of mine. His skin was still warm, soft, and his grip firm—just not as strong as it should have been.

"Don't thank me yet," I warned. "You're in so much trouble," I smiled nervously. "As soon as Carlisle says your free to go, I'm throwing you in the cage and kicking your ass." The laugh the pushed out from between my lips was full of anxiety. "I hope you like it in here, because you'll be back real soon." I looked down at his hand, squeezing the blood from his fingers. "I mean it, ace. I'm so pissed at you. You know I found your secret stash of cigarettes in the glove box? Smoked half the pack since you've been in here. My hair reeks. I haven't showered in like two days, I think. Oh, and I'm wearing scrubs because you bled all over me. Your car is ruined, by the way. I should have taken the Vanquish, then you'd really be suffering. And why did you—"

"Angel," Edward whispered as he clenched my hand in his. "Come here."

With tears streaming and my face red, I crawled up into Edward's bed on his good side and settled next to him, careful not to tug on the wires and tubes. I pressed my lips to his, finding relief in the warmth of his skin and the taste of his tongue against mine. He pressed his hand to the back of my head, holding me to him and knotting in my hair. I captured the side of his face, scratching my nails through the stubble on his jaw. Edward groaned, the little beeping noise speeding its pace.

"You're making me hard," he spoke against my lips, trailing his mouth down my neck.

"I don't think that's allowed."

"I was shot, Bella. Not castrated. And I'm not dead yet."

I tugged on his hair sharply and bit at his jaw. "Not funny. Don't you ever joke like that again. Or so help me Edward—"

"I love you too, Angel." He brought his lips to mine again, kissing me tenderly as his tongue licked across my bottom lip. He left a little nip, just enough to remind me.

"I love you," I answered sincerely. "You can't leave me yet. I'm not nearly done with you."

Edward smiled the crooked, smug grin. "I wouldn't dream of disobeying you, love. I know how dangerous you can be."

"Good." I relaxed to rest my head on Edward's good shoulder, his arm wrapped tightly around my shoulder. Hearing his heart beating in his chest and the breath filling his lungs calmed me gradually. "I was so scared, Edward."

He kissed the top of my head. "Now. Why don't you tell me what sort of trouble you've started while I've been asleep?"

He really knew me too well.


	29. Chapter 29

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N: **Hey. How's it going? Everybody hanging in there? Having a good time? Swell. So I've started a **Twitter** account and a **Tumblr**. You can find the links in my profile. Come hang out and say hi. As always, thanks so much for your reviews and comments. I get all stupid and excited when they start coming in. If you're new to this story because you just finished **Under the Blood Moon**, welcome. Hey, did you notice that I put **Rare Purity** back up? Sure did. Making edits, changes, rewrites, etc. Updating daily. This was my first fic. You can read more about its disappearance in the story notes. RP is my **rated-M version of Twilight** canon with one significant difference that drastically changes the series of events, starting with why Bella moved to Forks. **Vamps, wolves**, and the whole lot. Best of all (for some of you) there is no long, drawn-out love triangle. There is **graphic content** in later chapters, FYI.

* * *

**Chapter 29**

Carlisle had ordered Edward to remain in the hospital for a few days to rest and recover. He wanted to keep Edward under observation to ensure that he was healing properly and that there were no complications or infection resulting from the two surgeries. Knowing his nephew quite well, he correctly assumed that Edward would be a rotten patient. No way Edward would follow doctor's orders if left to his own devices.

For the time being, I had withheld informing Edward that I'd called Henry. The police were working on it. The FBI had contacted us. He didn't need anything else to worry about right now.

Carlisle and Esme took up residence in the spare bedroom at the condo while Alice helped me get the place ready for Edward to come home. He would on bed rest when he was finally released from the hospital. And again, knowing Edward, we'd all have to pull shifts keeping on eye on him. Except to go to the bathroom and occasionally get up to move his muscles, he was not to be on his feet. For two days Alice, Esme and I cooked meals that we stored in the freezer for his return. Emmett would surely burn the condo down if we left him to make lunch for Edward.

We agreed that I would take the morning shift, going into the gym a little late. Jasper, Emmett, and Alice would trade afternoons, and then I'd come home after work to take over again. Between the four of us, it was no trouble at all. Not that anyone would complain if it were. Except for Edward, but we were prepared for his surliness over being babysat.

Early one afternoon as I left the hospital to go home for a change of clothes and then head in to the gym, I got a text from Henry instructing me to go to Tony's and wait. I did as I was told, knowing better than to question him. I'd asked for his help and would defer to his judgment.

Inside, the place was nearly empty. The new guy was working the bar. I took up the stool at the end closest to the wall, looking at the front door, and order a club soda with lime. Exactly thirty minutes later, a stranger approached me. He was wasn't particularly large or intimidating as he pulled out the stool one down from me, ordered a beer, and proceeded to sit quietly. I waited for him to introduce himself or try to hit on me. Not like it was out of the ordinary for a 30-something male to grab a seat next to a girl at a bar.

He took a pack of cigarettes out of his shirt pocket. He was dressed appropriately for Key West; a button-down, short-sleeved Columbia shirt with cargo shorts and Topsiders. He had a day or two worth of stubble around his jaw, sunglasses sitting on his head of light brown hair.

In no particular hurry, he asked the bartender for an ashtray, sipped his beer, and pulled one cigarette out of the open pack. I waited, watching him out of the corner of my eye. He felt around in his pockets before finally pulling a small matchbook out. He ripped a match, struck it, and set the book aside—near my elbow propped up on the bar. I glanced down, reading the logo scrawled across the front: Third Floor bar, San Jose.

"Catch anything this morning?" I angled my body toward Simon Von, putting on a friendly smile. He had the look of a charter fisherman, so I decided to try that one out.

"We did okay," he answered casually. "A few Marlin." Simon flicked his cigarette over the edge of the ashtray. "Flat calm out there today."

"Yeah, the weather's perfect," I agreed. It was obvious now that I'd identified Simon, but he made no move to continue the conversation. Was there some etiquette of covert meetings that I was missing? Fucked in I knew.

I considered paying my tab and leaving out the back door toward the parking lot. I was driving Emmett's Jeep for the time being. The Volvo, apparently not a total loss, was having the interior stripped and reupholstered. Maybe I should get up and move to a table out of earshot of the bar tender? Or would that just look like I was trying to get away from Simon? Shit. I had no idea what to do.

"Hey, Jeff." I called the bartender over, who had been staring at the fishing report on television at the other end of the bar. I could try this and see what happened. "Jasper said Russ left a box of stuff for me in the office. Would you mind grabbing it?"

Jeff looked around, checking on the clientele. It was just us and two regulars who were not moving any time soon. "Yeah, sure. I'll check. Keep an eye out for me."

After Jeff moved up the stairs to the second-floor office, Simon took the matchbook, put out his cigarette, and slid a piece of paper across the bar in front of me.

"This is my cell number. Any time, day or night, you call that number and I will be at your door within two minutes. You won't see me again unless you call or I'm forced to step in. Do you understand?"

"Yes," I answered while staring up at the television overhead. I took the paper and shoved it in my pocket.

"You'll communicate through Henry. You don't call me unless you are in danger. Understood?"

"Yes."

"I'll have eyes on Cullen at all times. Henry will contact you again when he hits town. Finish your drink."

I picked up my glass and chugged down the rest of my club soda. This man was intense. I pictured him as a drill sergeant in a past life. Henry had said they'd served together at some point, which meant Simon was most definitely Special Forces of some kind. Though he spoke softly, there was an unmistakable authority in his voice. He was on my side—paid to be on my side—but I was already terrified of him.

Simon slapped a few bills on the bar for his drink. He stood, returning his pack of cigarettes to his shirt pocket and sliding his shades over his eyes. "You're in good hands." And with that, he left out the front door. I took that as my sign to slip out the back. Sorry, Jeff.

xXx

I had to keep reminding myself that I loved this man. I'd do anything for him. I'd call in the cavalry and put out a hit to protect this man. I'd step in front of a bullet the next time someone came for him. But right now, at this very moment, he was pissing me off.

"Damnit, Edward. Lie down, shut up, and stop being such a pain in the ass." I couldn't push him around—what with the newly sew-up lung and hole in his shoulder, but I really wanted to. I sat straddling his hips with a pillow in both hands. Only briefly did the idea of smothering him with it enter my mind. "You're going to stay here like a good little boy and let me bring you breakfast."

Edward narrowed his disgruntled eyes at me, fuming, seething, and thoroughly irritated. Tough shit, Jack. He actually fucking growled at me as if I'd find that intimidating. I could take an invalid, even if he was the best pound-for-pound fighter in the country.

"I don't want to hear it," I told him before he could grumble any more about getting up to feed himself. He was so damn difficult. "Carlisle said I had to make sure you healed from the chest up. He didn't say anything about busting your knee caps to keep you in bed."

"You're enjoying this," he hissed at me. I think he really might have fantasized about tossing me off the bed.

"No," I snapped at him. "I'm not. You're impossible. A toddler requires less fuss. Grow up, Cullen." I shoved the pillow behind his back to prop him up more comfortably and then hopped off the bed to head for the kitchen. For the last week while Edward bitched and moaned about his ordered bed rest, I had come to my wits end with him. If this was what having kids was like, count me the fuck out.

Carlisle and Esme had returned to Boston with the promise that they'd be back immediately if we needed anything. I promised to keep them informed.

Edward refused any prescription pain medication, which meant that he suffered in silence with a brave face. I didn't go anywhere near that argument. Carlisle hadn't put up much of a fight about it either. All I could do was try my best to keep him comfortable and entertained. He was already pissed about missing his next fight.

That was another daily battle. Edward, the lunatic, had it in his head that he would still be ready for the second of his scheduled three fights this year. It was only three months away. I was skeptical, Jasper flat-out refused, and Carlisle insisted that he wouldn't medically clear Edward if he weren't truly ready. Edward, of course, insisted that he'd be in that cage, regardless of his body's willingness. Such an ornery, stubborn man.

The real root of his poor attitude, in addition to his aversion to a sedentary lifestyle and being doted on, was going cold turkey on his favorite addiction. We hadn't had sex since the shooting. No play time whatsoever. Doctor's orders. And let me say, that was a very uncomfortable conversation with his uncle. But medically speaking, he wasn't permitted to exert himself and we had to keep his heart rate and breathing at a calm level. No getting hot and bothered. This sucked so bad. If Edward didn't get to come soon, or me for that matter, one of us was going to go postal.

"Breakfast is served," I announced cheerfully as I set the tray down over his lap. On the up side, Edward wasn't on any dietary restrictions, which meant I could spoil him with his favorite foods that would have offended Jasper. French toast was a quick way to my man's good side.

I crawled up on the bed next to him and slid under his arm to rest against his good shoulder. We ate together peacefully in bed. Edward did really well. He managed to hold his fork the entire time without too much pain. I was glad to be past the phase of having to cut his food for him. Not because I minded one damn bit. I didn't. But Edward felt completely emasculated for the experience. Slowly but surely, he was regaining the strength in his left shoulder, feeling in the nerves of his left arm and hand, and his pride along with it.

"Thank you, angel." Edward kissed the top of my head. "This is delicious." His right hand held me close, tickling the skin of my waist under my tank top. I was just grateful to have him alive and well, warm and breathing.

"You're welcome," I answered happily. I snagged the fork from him, stealing his bite of French toast. A tiny drop of syrup fell from the fork to his naked chest. We both paused, contemplated the amber bead that slid through the valley of his abdominal muscles, and groaned in needy frustration.

Fuck it.

If I went really slowly, maybe I could manage without Edward busting a lung. I bent down, licking the drop from his warm skin. Edward moaned as though he'd never been touched by a woman.

"Fuck, I love you," he stated adamantly. "Please, Bella."

"Just try not to get too excited," I warned him as I moved the tray aside. He pitched am impressive tent through the bed sheets and the duvet. Yeah, I was starving. "I mean it. If I hear you wheezing and panting, I'm leaving you with blue balls."

"Worth it. Now suck my cock or so help me I think it might fall off."

I did, but not because he told me to.


	30. Chapter 30

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

* * *

**Chapter 30**

Edward was sweating profusely and his breathing was labored. Jasper watched carefully as he went through the revolutions on the rowing machine, but I worried that we were allowing Edward to push himself too hard. The last few weeks of Edward's recovery had admittedly gone well, I thought. He'd spent two weeks with a physical therapist, but upon deciding that the man was an "incompetent twat," Edward had stopped attending sessions in favor of letting Jasper oversee his workout at the gym.

Though Jasper hadn't consented to let Edward participate in any actual fight training, my guess was that Edward just preferred the environment. If he were not allowed to tape up his hands and go three rounds in the cage, he would at least be near the damn thing. Or he had just developed an irrational hatred of his physical therapist because the man had been caught staring at my ass. Whichever.

I had taken to speeding through any necessary work in the morning so that I could be mostly free by lunchtime. I routinely ran down the street to the deli, picked up lunch for the guys, and came back to watch the second half of Edward's sessions. He took periodic breaks for an hour or two, but refused to cut back his schedule to less than eight hours a day. Mostly a bystander, it was generally my job to talk Edward down from the ledge when he tried to over do it or distract him into cooling down a little longer than he wanted.

As I watched Edward's arms extend and contract again, the muscles in his back flexing, I couldn't help but stare at the scar where once there had been a bleeding bullet hole. At home, when I'd see him just get out of bed or walking around the condo, I'd see it and be reminded of the sound of the shot and the way his body collapsed against mine. Without a threat from anyone, I'd gone ahead and started taking an over-the-counter sleeping pills. For three straight nights while Edward had been in the hospital, I woke up sweating and panicked, remembering the blood—Mike's blood, James, and the man I loved whom I'd always just considered indestructible.

"Ten more," Jasper ordered. "Pull all the way back. Farther. Faster," he barked without sympathy.

"Eat—shit—fucker," Edward panted between revolutions.

"Five more." Jasper ignored Edward's bitterness. The more pain Edward pushed through, the more his body protested the exercise and the meaner he got. It was just to be expected. "Okay, good. Cool down."

Jasper handed Edward a bottle of water and I followed next with a cool, damp towel over his shoulders.

"Hi." I came to sit on the front of the rowing machine while facing Edward. With another towel I wiped over his forehead and down one side of his neck. I left a kiss under his jaw, noticing the pounding of his pulse under the skin. "You did really well. How do you feel?"

"Like I have a hole in my lung and can't feel my forearm." Edward roughly grabbed the dry towel from my fingers and scrubbed it over his face. "Any other stupid questions?"

I knew not to take his callous attitude personally. It wasn't me he was mad at. Nevertheless, it always cut me just a little. I tried not to let it show on my face.

"You were faster than yesterday by thirty seconds. That's a big improvement." I hoped quantifiable good news would help a little. Bottom line: Edward wasn't happy with his progress. He expected too much from himself. The mind was willing, but body was not cooperating.

"Wonderful." Note the sarcasm.

"Let me take your pulse." I reached for his wrist, but Edward snapped it away.

"I'm fine. Back off." He chugged the water. When he the bottom from his lips, I noted the way he had to struggle to catch his breath.

"Man up, Champ. It was just a little bullet hole. You get shot one time and suddenly you're like a belly aching four-year-old." I waited. He'd either unload on me with a tired of epic proportions or…

He exhaled on a smile, setting down his bottle of water. "Thank you, angel. I'm sorry." Edward slid himself forward on the seat to put himself between my bent legs as his finger trailed up my thighs. "You've been remarkably patient in putting up with me."

"Yeah, well, only because your face didn't get messed up and your dick still works. Otherwise," I winked at him, "you'd be useless to me."

He affected a serious expression, nodding thoughtfully. "Naturally. I'm a lucky bastard."

"Damn right you are."

Edward leaned forward and slid his fingers through the hair at the back of my neck, tugging me closer. Rather than kiss me, his diverted to my ear. "I love you."

His lips traveled down my neck until Jasper returned to cough and remind us that we weren't in bed but rather sitting in the middle of the gym with a couple dozen spectators.

"Love you back," I replied with a pleased smile. Even Edward's breathing had calmed down and his face wasn't flushed so red. Much better. "Hungry? I've got food waiting for you guys in the office."

"Emmett's already followed the scent," Jasper interjected. "There might not be anything left."

I had to take a moment to appreciate that we'd fallen back into a routine and assembled some sense of normalcy, even if it was only a thin veil over the surface. I hadn't heard an update from Henry in six days. The police hadn't come up with any leads on the unidentified man in a strategically placed baseball cap caught on the security cameras. The FBI was still chasing its tail with no further news on Victoria's whereabouts or that of her missing attorney.

xXx

For the first time since the shooting, we found ourselves at Tony's sitting around a table with Brody and the band. I felt bad for having missed their gig at the festival in Gainesville, but of course he understood and had called several times since then to see how Edward was doing. The chartered flight had taken them there and back, just as promised. While the group did get a few nibbles from a couple of record labels, Harvey Keitel hadn't come home with a contract.

"We made the necessary contacts and now they've at least heard of us. Maybe something will come of it, but we definitely got our name out there," Brody explained as he sipped his beer.

It felt good to sit back and enjoy a night out. Edward was in better spirits as he lazily combed his fingers through my hair. Alice and Jasper were adorably sucked into their own little bubble, Garrett had Kate suitably entertained, and Emmett was happy to kick back and ogle the scenery of women. Though it was always present in my mind that our circumstances weren't as simple as they appeared, I appreciated the intermittent moments when I didn't actually feel the noose around my neck.

Simon Von sat at the edge of the bar across the room, able to see our table without actually looking like he was watching. Alice didn't know his face, certainly my brothers weren't privy to his involvement, and Edward only knew that Henry was digging in the shadows. I studiously avoided looking in the man's direction.

"Actually," Brody went on, "this European guy gave me his card. I guess their label is big over there, kind of like Virgin, but they're expanding into the States. A couple of the headliners at the festival were on their label."

"The dude was creepy," Caleb interjected. "Like he thought he was in the British mafia or something."

"Is there such a thing?"

"Fuck if I know," Brody laughed. "But yeah. I was sort of sketched out on that guy anyway. It was cool that he offered us his card, but we saw him doing lines with one of the bands backstage. So, you know, not really the sort of scene I want to get down with."

"Goes with the territory," I answered. "The guys I played with for a while lost their last guitarist to drugs. Almost every gig we played, someone was holding. That's why I picked up smoking cloves for a while when I was on the road with them. I walked into the greenroom, saw one of the other bands doing lines off some half-naked chick, and darted out the back door instead. I bummed a cigarette off their keyboard player. Apparently that was his trick. He was just went outside and smoked until it was over."

"To sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll," Brody toasted with his beer raised high.

xXx

The condo was dark when Edward dragged me inside and promptly pinned my back against the wall. My sound of surprise was muffled by Edward's lips and his hungry tongue penetrating my mouth. We'd made it past the moratorium on sex, with a little cheating, and now he tried making up for lost time as frequently as possible. We were the first of the group to leave the bar.

I went for his T-shirt, but Edward caught my hands and swiftly lifted them above my head to hold my wrists in just one of his hands. With the other, he hastily tugged open the button of my jeans and yanked down the zipper. He pushed them down with my panties as far as he could reach before sliding his fingers between my thighs.

"You're already wet for me, love."

I whimpered and my head fell back against the wall as Edward sent first one and then a second finger inside me. My knees bent involuntarily at the wonderful feeling of his penetration and Edward's thumb rubbing over my clit. Still sort of standing on my own two feet, my body was mostly limp as it surrendered to Edward. He was practically holding me up with just the fingers fucking me ever harder and higher up the wall.

"Your hot little cunt is dripping all over my hand," he purred against my neck. Excited bumps erupted over my skin as a rolling wave of arousal washed through my body. I could practically come on command when his voice had that dark, quiet bite to it.

Abruptly, Edward pulled away. I opened my eyes and stared at him dazedly.

"Strip, Bella."

I could barely catch my breath, a little dizzy.

"Now," he ordered sharply. I watched as he cupped his cock through his jeans, the long, thick outline protruding beneath the denim. He squeezed, waiting for me to comply.

Hurriedly, I shimmied out of my jeans and underwear, my shirt and bra quickly discarded to the floor.

"Much better," he stated appreciatively.

Edward's eyes were dark and hooded, fiercely determined as he stalked toward me again. Roughly, he grabbed both wrists and pinned them above me. This time, however, he pressed them higher so that my body was stretched and elongated to his will. My back arched in this position, thrusting my breasts toward him.

He once more gathered both of my wrists in one of his hands, the other returning to my slit. His fingers moved through my sex and played at my clit. He then took his hand away only to massage both of my breasts with his wet fingers. Hungrily, Edward licked at one nipple, sucking it between his lips and tugging almost to the point of pain.

"Fuck you taste good," he mumbled against my skin. "Perfect goddamn tits." I was pretty sure he was only muttering to himself. Nevertheless, I stopped listening coherently as two fingers entered me, fucking me in slow, forceful strokes.

Edward paid both breasts ample attention, damn near sucking my nipples raw. I was already shaking beneath him. My legs were mostly useless as I succumbed to his will. When I felt him release my arms and move his way lower, I protested.

"Edward. Let's go to bed. Or at least the couch."

"No." He kissed down my stomach and kneeled in front of me, pulling one leg over his shoulder to expose me to his mouth. "I want you just like this. Naked and quivering against the wall while I eat you out." Then he pushed me up the wall and draped my other leg over his shoulder, holding me off the ground with his hands firmly cradling my ass.

Edward's tongue licked through my slit. He flicked over my clit and then sucked purposefully. I was unable to do anything more than hold on to his shoulders while my hips moved against his mouth. He devoured me with practiced precision and determined force.

As his tongue dipped inside me, fucking me with shallow passes, I felt one hand moving underneath me. He slipped his digits between my cheeks, tentatively seeking out a place he'd never touched me before.

"Edward."

I wasn't so sure about this. In reality, I didn't have the wherewithal to stop him, but I was a little scared of the idea. He didn't reply, only pushing one finger against my tight opening. Rather than force the digit inside, he simple rubbed at my puckered hole, massaging the sensitive tissues. The sensation was odd. Very odd. But not unpleasant.

"So fucking good," he groaned. My thighs clenched as I felt my orgasm build. "Come on my tongue, Bella. That's it," he purred, "grind your needy little cunt on my face."

I shattered, crying out loudly as I convulsed against the wall. He laved at my sex while I shuddered through my climax, panting in shallow breaths.

Before I completely recovered, Edward scooped me up in his arms and carried me off to the bedroom. He laid me down in the center of the bed, carefully placing my head against the pillows. I watched with hooded eyes as he stripped out of his T-shirt, jeans, and boxer briefs. I never got tired of staring at his tall, muscular, virile body. Immediately, my eyes fell to his erect cock.

"I don't think it is a sin I've committed often," Edward spoke softly as he stroked himself from root to tip, "but know that I will never for a moment take you for granted, Bella. What you've done for me—these past few weeks and since the beginning—I'm grateful, angel. You're my whole world. I'd gladly take that bullet again so long as I could protect you."

"Edward, baby." My voice caught in my throat. I felt my eyes prick with tears. "Come here."

He climbed on the bed and covered my body with his, so warm and vital. I opened my legs to wrap around his hips, cradling his face in my hands.

"I've never felt that you take me for granted. Not once. I'd do anything for you because I know that you love me. I know you're always there for me. You're everything, Edward. Always."

Our lips met, slower and softer than before.

"Make love to me," I whispered.

Edward positioned himself at my entrance, gently sliding the wide head of his cock through my slit and coating himself in my moisture. He pushed inside in one long thrust, both of us moaning in relief of the connection. I craved the way he stretched and filled me almost too much.

"I love you," he whispered against my shoulder. "I love you, angel. I need you." He kept repeating himself, muttering under his breath as he pulled back not even half way and pushed forward again, like he couldn't bear to move any farther away.

My hands traced over his shoulders, his back, and everywhere I could reach, occasionally stopping to feel the scar on the left side of his back just to the center of his shoulder blade. Inches. Centimeters, maybe, and I might have lost him. I'd known it from the first time we'd made love, but there was no way I'd ever get over Edward. There was no one else after him. Either I'd go first or die clinging to his memory. There was simply no one else who could ever reach me the way he did, understand me the way Edward intrinsically could. No man would ever touch me the way Edward had, and it would never feel the same.

"Bella," he breathed out my name as his hips began to move on longer strokes that plunged deeper into my womb. "Marry me, angel."

"Yes."


	31. Chapter 31

_Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended._

_Story Notes: Story will contain explicit language. There will be graphic lemons. Intended only for mature audience. This story is AH and characters are OOC._

**A/N: **I'm happy to announce that **The Debt** has been nominated for an **Engergize W.I.P Award** in the "**Most Promising Twilight Fanfiction ~ Canon**" category. Voting begins on July 13:  
www*energizewipawards*blogspot*com/2011/09/nominee s*html

And come talk to me on Twitter:** Ta_Paixao.** I will humbly accept your scolding...

* * *

**Chapter 31**

I woke up to Edward's fingers running up and down my thigh, gently coaxing me from a very satisfying night's rest. I yawned, stretching my legs. Tucking me tighter against his chest, he placed kisses across my shoulder.

"Good morning, angel."

"Morning," I mumbled in return. I rolled over to face him, prying my eyes open to find his serene smile. Little by little, the night before emerged from my memory. I stared at him, a bit in awe. "Did that really happen?"

Rather than answer, Edward brought my left hand up to his lips, kissing each knuckle.

"Holy shit," I whispered. "Edward." My eyes fixated on the huge rock that sat sparkling on my finger, round blue sapphires set in the platinum band. "What the hell is this?" I looked up, curiously searching his emerald eyes.

"Well, it isn't quite a scowl, but I'll take it." He pushed my hair over my shoulder, smiling unabashedly. "Do you like it?"

"Of course I do. It's too big. You spent way too much. But…" I stared at the ring, tilting my hand to watch as the stone caught and reflected the morning light through the bedroom windows. "Edward, it's perfect. How did you do this?"

"I had it custom made the day they let me out of the hospital. It arrived a few weeks ago."

I pushed his good shoulder down—I was still afraid to touch the left one—and rolled on top of him, straddling Edward as my hair feel around his face. His hands came up to push the length back and hold it at the nape of my neck. He was hard beneath me, still grinning like an idiot.

"You sneaky bastard."

"I figured it was best to get the ring on your finger before you could change your mind. For the record," he slid one hand to the side of my neck, dragging his thumb under my jaw, "that ring represents a binding contract. You can't refuse me now. Frankly, I won't take no for an answer."

"And what would you do?" I cocked one eyebrow, baiting the lion.

"Slip a bag over your head, toss you over my shoulder, and cart you away somewhere no one would ever find us." Edward wrapped both hands around my ribs, his thumbs rubbing the underside of my breasts.

"That seems to be a common theme with you." I leaned down, combing my fingers through is hair. "Didn't anyone ever tell you that no one gets everything they want?"

"No, as a matter of fact." Edward smirked, so sure of himself.

"Fine," I groaned. "I guess I'll marry you. If only to avoid the hassle of an actual kidnapping."

"Fine?" His eyes narrowed and his voice dropped to that warning tone.

"Sure," I shrugged and rolled my eyes, doing my best not to laugh.

Edward easily flipped us over, pinning me to the bed with my legs spread around him and my hands above my head. "You'll pay for that," he growled.

"Be careful," I teased. "My fiancé is the jealous type and hits people for a living."

"Goddamn right." His lips captured mine and I opened to him, relishing the feel of his tongue slipping against mine. I didn't even protest about morning mouth. Not even I would kill such a perfect mood. "Just to be clear…" Edward whispered against my lips.

"Yes," I repeated. "I'll marry you, Edward. What kind of stupid question is that?"

"Shut up, love." I would have replied with some snappy retort, but Edward sealed his lips over mine, sliding inside me as I lost all will to answer.

I moaned, arching my back to take him deeper as my heels dug into his ass. He slipped one hand to my legs, urging my ankles higher around his waist as he levered over me to sink inside and burrow against my womb.

"Right here," Edward whispered against my neck. He thrust his hips, fully embedded inside me—hard, thick, and filling me so completely. "Forever, Bella."

We kissed, passion and possession. I tugged at his hair, scratched at his back, and flexed my hips against his as I writhed beneath, yet he didn't move an inch. Edward maintained a permanent pressure, leaning most of his weight on his cock trying to poke a hole into my stomach, but he didn't pull back to push in again. Instead, Edward slid one hand between us and the other underneath me. Against my clit, his expert fingers massaged me firmly. I whimpered and moaned into his mouth, biting at his bottom lip and sucking on his tongue. Quickly, my body began to quake with my building orgasm. But he wouldn't move.

"Baby," I pleaded, "fuck me."

"I want to feel you come on my cock," he answered in a low, rough voice. "I want to feel your soft little cunt squeezing me." The hand under my ass moved until one gentle finger slipped between my cheeks. "And I want to feel your ass gripping my finger when you scream my name."

"Edward," I breathed out, my legs trembling as he rubbed my clit faster. "I—"

"Shh, love. I'll be very gentle. I want all of you," he whispered against my ear. His lips caressed my neck, nipping at my skin. "I want this," he emphasized by circling his finger at my asshole. I tensed a little, a reflex reaction. "I'm going fuck this perfect little ass, Bella. I'm going to fill every part of you." He pinched my clit, causing me to cry out as my muscles went haywire. He used the opportunity to press just the tip of his finger inside my ass. I clenched around his cock and his finger at once. "Mmm," he hummed, returning to rubbing my clit. "But first I'm going to teach you how pleasurable it can be for you. I'm going to teach you to crave it."

He dipped his head, kissing between my breasts and then moving to lick at one nipple. I arched up to meet him as he sucked the hard peak between his lips, biting lightly. At the same time, he worked his finger inside me a little further. It was a strange sensation, but I had little time to consider that. My muscles clamped down and a surge of excited electricity ran hot and violent through my body. I came, writhing beneath Edward as he filled me.

"Fuck, Bella. Yes." He groaned, working his finger in and out of my ass, my body shook. "I'm coming," he grated out. I felt him spurt warm inside me, his cock throbbing. He began to move, pumping in pace with his finger in my ass. I was so slick with his semen as he fucked me, not softening even after his release.

"Get on your knees," he ordered roughly. He pulled out, fisting his slick cock in front of me. I sat up, moving to my hands and knees. "Suck me clean," he rasped. "Every drop, love."

I obeyed, hungry to have him in my mouth and taste us together on my tongue. He fed me his cock. I licked up the length, gathering his cum on my tongue. My lips captured the wide head and sucked, massaging him with my tongue before taking him fully into my mouth. He was warm, hard, and so thick between my lips. I worked him to the hilt, opening my throat to take him fully. He groaned in satisfaction, fingers digging into my hair. Gently, Edward rocked his lips, fucking my mouth in long, slow thrusts.

"You're beautiful with my cock in your mouth." I looked up as I swallowed him. Edward hissed, watching me intently. "Enough," he bit and pulled out. Again he held his dick in his hand, rubbing up and down. "Turn around and bend over."

I did as he asked, leaning on my shoulders with my legs apart and completely exposed to him.

"You're perfect," he complimented. Edward ran his fingers through my slit, gathering the remnants of our release leaking out. He then moved his fingers to my puckered opening, lubricating me. "I'll go easy," he warned. "Just relax and trust me."

I did. Of course I did. And in truth, I was excited by the new experience. Our sex life was far from dull, but I wanted everything with Edward. He made me feel beautiful and adored, never self-conscious or ashamed of my body. Most of all, I wanted Edward to possess every part of me. I was his, always had been. And he'd be mine forever.

Gradually, Edward worked himself in pussy, fucking me in soft, gentle strokes as his finger again penetrated my ass. I concentrated on not fighting the sensation, but relaxing my muscles. Edward read my body effectively, knowing exactly how to touch me and coax the desired response. He was tender, delicate with me. I felt his finger twist and burrow in my ass, stretching me, eventually adding a second. I moaned unabashedly at the feeling of him filling me everywhere at once.

Eventually, Edward pulled out and rubbed the head of his dick against my asshole. He felt slippery, fucking his cock between my cheeks and just barely nudging at my opening.

"You ready?"

"Yes," I answered breathlessly.

Edward pushed forward slowly. I struggled not to tense against him. His hands softly massaged my ass, gentling me. With a slight sting the head of his cock notched inside my ass. "Push back, Bella. Take me in."

Timidly, I did so. The sting turned into a dull ache as Edward's thick cock slid incrementally deeper. He pulled back a little, sinking in again. I was already panting for air, trying to adjust to the intrusion.

"You feel so good, love." He pushed forward. "Fuck. So goddamn hot and tight." Soothingly, his hands roamed over my back and hips. He bent over me, leaving light kisses and little bites on my shoulders. The added weight effectively drove the last inches of his cock fully inside until his sac was pressed firmly against my pussy. "You okay?"

"Yes. Please, baby."

He didn't need any more confirmation before he sat back and pulled out to just the head and then plunged back in. I lost all control of my voice, fisting my hands in the sheets as he fucked my asshole.

"I want your fingers," I demanded. "Now, Edward."

"Like this?" He asked as he easily shoved one, two, and then three inside my pussy.

"Fuck, yes."

"So greedy for me, aren't you?" He sped his pace, fucking my ass with purpose as he pumped his fingers. "You like being stuffed full of me, don't you? Taking it in both of your tight holes." Edward grunted, his hips landing against my ass with each thrust. "You're mine," he growled. "All of you. This cunt, this gorgeous ass, and that smart little mouth."

"I'm yours," I cried. "Harder. More."

With his other arm, Edward pulled me to rest my back against his chest. My head fell to his shoulder. He held my with his fingers pumping inside me, his hand kneading my breast, and his cock driving into me from behind.

"You're so fucking amazing," Edward praised against my neck. "I love you."

A moment later, I shattered in his arms, quivering as I came. The sound that escaped from Edward's chest was deep and guttural. He came in my ass as I shook, completely lost in his warm body and adoration. Somewhere in the room my phone rang and then his. We told the world to fuck off and make do without us as we stepped into the shower and melted into the hot water.

What followed should have been a blissful morning of listening to Alice squeal at the news of our engagement, my brothers fighting over who would walk me down the aisle, and trying to convince Emmett to put on a dress as a bridesmaid. Edward and I should have been completely distracted from anything productive as we pointed at maps and Google Image photos, deciding on possible locations for the wedding where cost was no object. Alice would demand I wear some ostentatious gown—I'd agree once I pictured the look on Edward's face as he watched me approach.

There were headaches to endure in planning until we both said fuck it and let Alice worry about it all. Eventually, we'd toss the whole agenda and scurry off with our family to a secluded beach to tie the knot barefoot in the sand or on the bow of a sailboat. Edward would insist on a three-month honeymoon, but I'd talk him down to three weeks. We'd spend our days naked, making love, eating, getting drunk, and fucking like we'd just met for the first time. He'd eventually get anxious and moody, having been out of the gym for too long.

That should have been our happy ending.

But as we lingered naked in the bedroom, still kissing as we dried from our shower, we both snapped our attention to the bedroom door. On the other side, the distinct click of the front door echoing off the hardwood floors alerted both of us. Shoving me behind him, Edward quickly pulled his loaded 9mm from the nightstand, chambered a round, and pointed it at the bedroom door. We didn't have to wait long to find out who was on the other side, and it was nothing good.

* * *

**End Notes:** WTF? I'm just going to leave it there? Yep.

So, let me speak frankly. This story sort of went off the rails a while ago. The plot and eventual ending are still clear in my mind, but getting there proved a more convoluted process than originally thought. There were so many pieces to set up, it became muddled and started to drag out.

That being said, I am going to call this one complete (stay with me here) and pick up on a third installment with renewed focus. Sometimes you just have to stop, regroup, and start fresh. The next installment will begin immediately and launch straight into the thrilling (I hope) conclusion to this little tale.

This has been a long ride for many of you since UtBM. I appreciate your patience, encouragement, and support. Don't worry, I'm not going to abandon this story. So stay tuned for the third installment to pick up very soon. If you have not already, please put me on author alert so you will know when it posts.

Again, thank you all. I'm asking for a little understanding and leeway here as I get my act together and get E&B's story back on track. I think you'll really like what I have planned for the big showdown. Of course, you know there has to be a knockdown, drag-out fight to the finish.

See you soon!


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